7. Practical Applications
Cora tried to focus. She lay on the floor of the small room she had been locked into. Now that the robots were no longer around, she could think a little more clearly. She didn't want to think about them. The Skull's sinister silence, Hare's harsh laughter, that piece of mechanical insanity called The Jack… They inspired only feelings of revulsion and yet, Cora almost pitied them. From what little she could sense of them, their strongest feelings were of pain and bitterness, even fear. They didn't start villainous, she was certain of that. If the Walter robots had gone through what the Becile robots did, would they have fared any better? The thought was a sad one. Still, they had a choice. There's always a choice. Now, if only she could think of some way out of this mess.
The door opened and Hare stepped inside. He grabbed Cora's arm, hauling her to her feet.
"Let's go, sweetheart," he said, "Don't wanna keep Mr. Becile waiting, do ya?"
"Unhand me!" Cora said sharply.
She tried to pull away from him. She couldn't afford to lose the ability to think clearly, but it was no use. Hare only kept her closer as he dragged her through the hallways. Cora could feel herself slipping back into a fog. Her vision clouded and her thoughts slowed.
They came to a room that Cora realized was a lab. There were three people inside, and she was fairly certain that the two assistants called the man with glasses Mr. Becile. A table stood in the center of the room, and Cora noticed that it was outfitted with restraints. She tried very hard not to imagine what a man of science would need with a table like that. She was too disoriented to struggle as Hare lifted her onto the table and strapped her to it. Mr. Becile was speaking now, and she attempted to focus on his voice.
"You two are familiar with our plan, correct?" he said, "We'll keep the cyborg on life support while we detach the clockwork heart and disassemble it. Once we've made detailed schematics and reattached it, we'll be able to do further research on the affects of the blue matter in her cybernetic enhancements. Understood? Now, let's get started. … Ugh, of course, it would require a key. Not to worry. It's one of the lesser known practical applications, but green matter makes an excellent lock-pick."
Cora felt the click as the panel unlocked and sprang open. She shut her eyes tightly. The green matter in such close proximity turned her stomach. She fought the urges to either throw up or pass out, only catching fragments of conversation as Mr. Becile and his assistants began to work.
"…can't find where this disconnects…that's not right…whole section just came loose, set it over there…fool, now you've broken something!"
The door of the lab burst open.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, Mr. Becile," it was The Skull's voice, "The Walter robots have infiltrated the building."
"What!" Mr. Becile roared, "How did they get in here? Nevermind! You three, hold them off and make sure they don't get their hands on the cyborg. I'm going to evacuate the building."
Sound of running feet. Someone releasing the restraints.
The Skull: "You carry the girl, pinhead."
Hare: "I always get stuck with the glamour jobs…"
Arms lifting her heedlessly. The Jack giggling. Running.
xXx
The Spine, Rabbit, and Hatchworth ran through the building that was one of the Becile's secret installations. They had gotten inside undetected before they were spotted by a security guard. Now stealth was irrelevant and they had no time to lose.
"This should be the lab," said The Spine.
They burst into the room that Cora had been in just moments ago. Hatchworth picked up something from a tray.
"The Spine, look," he said.
It was a piece of Cora's heart.
"She was here!" said The Spine, "We must have just missed them. Come on, we have to hurry."
"How are we going to find her now?" Hatchworth asked.
"We'll listen for her. If she can sense us, maybe we can sense her too."
Any other time, The Spine would have been disconcerted by Rabbit's grim silence, but he knew that all the copper robot's energy was focused on the task at hand. They started running again. As they rounded a corner, they skidded to a halt. In the middle of the hall, swaying back and forth like a snake, stood The Jack. Rabbit started forward, but Hatchworth caught his arm.
"Don't worry, I've got this," said Hatchworth.
The Spine and Rabbit watched as Hatchworth walked straight up to The Jack.
"Hello, there!" Hatchworth said brightly, "May I interest you in a sandwich?"
"What kind of sandwich…?" asked The Jack.
"It'll be a surprise."
"I love surprises!"
The Jack sat down cross-legged and looked up at Hatchworth expectantly. The bespectacled automaton shot his brothers a glance and a slight nod. They edged past him and down the hallway while he had The Jack distracted.
"Now," Hatchworth was saying, "If you can figure out what kind of sandwich this is in three guesses, I'll give you another one."
As soon as they were out of earshot, The Spine and Rabbit started to run again. They didn't get very far. The Skull stood at the end of the next long hallway.
"If it isn't Pinocchio," he said, "Still hoping you'll turn into a real boy if you're good enough?"
"I'll hold him off," The Spine murmured, "It's up to you, Rabbit. Don't forget to listen for her. Now follow my lead."
The Spine tore down the hallway with Rabbit running directly behind him. The Skull charged. At the last second, The Spine lowered his shoulder, catching The Skull in the abdomen and tackling him as Rabbit vaulted over them and sprinted down the hall.
The sounds of their fight faded, and Rabbit came to a place where two halls intersected. He paused. Turning to look at each hall, he listened for the familiar almost-sound of blue matter. There. It was faint, and it was unlike he'd heard it before. It was a warm resonance in his mind, more acoustic than electric, more like wind than strings or percussion. He raced off, following it to where Hare was nearing the back exit. Hare, still holding a barely conscious and deathly pale Cora, turned as he heard Rabbit approaching.
"Well, look what the cat dragged in," said Hare.
"Y-y-you let her go," Rabbit ordered, glaring at him.
"Silly rabbit, heroics are for kids," Hare snickered, "Why dontcha fight me for your lady fair?"
He set Cora down unceremoniously, leaning her against the wall, and walked towards Rabbit.
"If you insist," Rabbit shrugged, "But I've g-got something you don't."
"What's that?" Hare sneered, "The power of friendshi-"
Hare was sent flying back, slammed against the door from the force of Rabbit's punch to his abdomen.
"I was g-going to say superior potential energy," said Rabbit, "But sure, friendship works, too."
He pulled off the blue jacket and went to Cora, kneeling in front of her. The sight of the open panel with the half-disassembled heart ticked irregularly beneath it gave him even more cause for alarm.
"Cora?" he asked.
Getting no response, Rabbit reached forward to touch her face. Cora flinched at the gentle touch. Her eyes opened and she shrank back in fear.
"It's alright," Rabbit continued hurriedly, "It's j-just me."
"Rabbit…?" said Cora.
She grabbed the front of his shirt and leaned her head against his chest. Her breath came shakily as though she was sobbing, but she was too exhausted for tears. Rabbit tensed suddenly as he heard someone approaching, then realized with a sigh of relief that it was Hatchworth and The Spine.
"It's alright," Rabbit repeated as he put the jacket around Cora's shoulders, "We're here n-n-now. You're safe."
"We'd better get out of here," said The Spine.
"Oh, I don't think so."
The robots turned to see Mr. Becile standing in the back doorway. Hare was still on the ground at his feet. Mr. Becile gave the stunned automaton a kick.
"Get up, you useless heap of scrap," he growled.
Hare clambered to his feet as his two counterparts closed in on the group from the other side. The Jack crawled on his knees and elbows, and a disheveled The Skull looked as though he had gotten the worst of his fight with The Spine. The Walter robots eyed them warily, standing defensively around Cora.
"What have we here? The Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion," said Mr. Becile, looking at Rabbit, The Spine, and Hatchworth in turn.
"Surrender Dorothy," The Jack giggled.
"Precisely. Hand over the cyborg, or I promise this will go badly for you."
"Y-y-you just try it," said Rabbit.
"Be quiet, Rabbit!" Cora snapped.
The Walter robots looked back at her in surprise. Cora had risen, leaning against the wall for support. Now she staggered forward a bit to face Mr. Becile. She grabbed onto Rabbit's arm to steady herself, and fixed Mr. Becile with a scornful glare.
"If your idiot lackeys hadn't been so overzealous," she said, her tone dripping with disdain, "you never would've had all this trouble. I was carrying the schematics the whole time, but I dropped my jacket when that creature grabbed me."
Cora glanced at Hare for a moment, then looked back at Mr. Becile. She flung the jacket at him as forcefully as she could.
"Here!" she continued, "They're in the left-hand pocket."
A triumphant grin spread across Mr. Becile's face as he reached greedily into the pocket.
"I knew one of you could be reasonable," he said, "Now I'll… what on earth? Something's grabbed me. Help me, you fools!"
His expression turned to utter panic as his arm was yanked into the pocket up to his shoulder. The Skull grabbed onto his other arm, and Hare onto The Skull's. The Jack, still on the floor, crawled forward and bit onto the leg of Hare's pants, growling like a dog. After a moment's struggle, Mr. Becile disappeared into the pocket with a dismayed cry, never releasing The Skull's arm. Now the robot was elbow-deep in the pocket. Hare let go of him quickly, but The Skull whirled around and grabbed him by the throat.
"Not a chance, pal," he snarled, "If I go down, you're going down with me."
Hare fought to free himself, The Jack still clinging to his leg. With a sudden jerk, The Skull, Hare, and The Jack were all pulled through the portal. The jacket dropped to the floor.
The Walter robots stared at it in silence for a moment. Then Cora laughed weakly.
"I can hardly believe that worked," she said, "A kraken in a pocket dimension, Spine? I never should have doubted it. I'm sorry that I shouted at you, Rabbit. I-"
"No worries, I get it," the copper robot smiled, "You were just being practical."
He put an arm around Cora as she leaned back against him. Hatchworth picked up the jacket and was looking at it curiously.
"I'd be careful with that, Hatchy," The Spine warned, "You know, Cora, they'll probably come back sooner or later."
"Well, I hope they're gone for a good long time," Cora said, "Every time I meet a Becile, it just breaks my heart."
"Was that a pun?" Rabbit looked down at her with an astonished grin.
The Spine shook his head at the awful joke, but had a hard time not smiling at it a little.
"Come on," he said, "Let's get you home."
"Home," she repeated.
Suddenly the air before them shimmered. Through the widening portal, they could see morning sunlight streaming through the windows of Walter Manor.
"I didn't know she could do that," said Hatchworth.
"I don't think she did either," added The Spine.
"Allow me," said Rabbit.
He lifted Cora into his arms and carried her through the portal, The Spine and Hatchworth following closely.
"Do you mind closing that thing, Cora?" said The Spine, "It'll let in a draft."
"Right," Cora answered, and the portal winked out of existence.