Lap 10

The Real Culprit

Searching for a man that didn't want to be found turned out to be a real challenge. First off, of course Roy's parents knew that he was missing. I had visited them as myself rather than Captain Falcon. His mom, who had always liked me, pretty much wailed into her husband's arms the whole time I was there.

"Mr H., you don't believe Captain Falcon caused that crash did you?" I had asked tentatively. He thankfully shook his head.

"After watching him shake Roy's hand on his first time back in 15 years, I don't believe he'd suddenly view Roy as a threat," Mr. Hughes said.

"An-Andy…do you know where he could be?" Mrs. Hughes managed to get out. I shook my head.

"My sister is in the GSF and tells me that a team of officers is on the lookout for him," I explained.

"But…but aren't they supposed to arrest Captain Falcon on sight too?" she asked. I shook my head.

"Most of the GSF believes Captain Falcon is innocent," I said. That seemed to have lightened the mood afterwards. Meanwhile, I now had to deal with Lisa's constant messages about updates on where her "Boy Toy" Roy was. Sam and I had found pretty much nothing so far. I had searched all of the typical locations. Falcon House, Mute City University, the GSF lot where he worked but found nothing. Until one day where a revelation had finally hit me. I had been relaxing in the Falcon Lair after apprehending a basic bounty. Nothing too bad, mainly just racketeering charges. It wasn't even super duper illegal stuff either. Still illegal so he only got 5 years in prison. It was when I was thinking about the word "prison" when something hit me. Jailbird Jill. Who was Jailbird Jill? Well…let's just say there was a time where Roy was single along with me and we had spent a lot of weekends in the redlight district. Even when we weren't really supposed to be there. Do NOT tell Aunt DJ. I will end you. I typed in the establishment where Jailbird Jill worked at the time. It came up on the screen and looked just like I remembered it.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Sam's voice came from behind me. I turned to see her carrying some take out food and an extremely angry expression.

"I know this looks bad but I had an idea," I said.

"The answer is NO! You are mine!" Sam retorted. Oh…she thought…nevermind. Had to salvage this mistake as best as I could.

"Promise to not get mad," I began. Sam put down the food, crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow.

"Back in the day, before Roy and Lisa were really official and before I met you again, we sometimes would go to the red light district. I had a thought that he could be there," I explained quickly. Sam remained silent for multiple aggravating moments.

"Were any of them prettier than me," she asked rather crossly.

"No," I responded quickly. "I don't recall them getting my favorite take out out of nowhere either. All I really remember was the booze…that and waking up in a boat down by the dock one day."

Sam kept her arms crossed while Fal chuckled a little bit from the computer screen. Eventually she spoke

"Fal," Sam said. "If you see Andy even glance at any of those women, I want to know at once."

Later that afternoon, I found myself walking the neon lit red light district of Mute City. Bars and "gentleman's" clubs galore adorned the streets along with multiple people walking up and asking for "favors". Goodness, I had forgotten how uncomfortable this area of the city could be at the time. Thankfully, the bar that Roy and I used to frequent wasn't that far into the district. I looked up at the sign and smiled reminiscently. Ahh The Jailbird Pub. This place actually had killer appetizers. It had the name because it was staffed by a good amount of ex-cons. I've met the owner a few times. Nice guy. Anyway, there used to be a dancer here named Jailbird Jill that both Roy and I had a crush on but if you ask me, Jill favored me over Roy. Again, do NOT tell anyone that I just told you that. Now before you start wondering why I would just waltz into this place as Captain Falcon, you'd be mistaken. I was disguised a little bit thanks to the holographic tech. Under the disguise, yes I was in the Captain Falcon suit but I had a trench coat and scarf on as well. The bouncer let me in without so much as a second glance and I turned into the dining area of the building. It looked pretty much just like I remembered. Clean but a little worn down. It wasn't too busy either. One of the dancers was currently performing to a small crowd of people. But that's when I saw him. Sitting in the back shrouded in shadows alone.

"Fal," I whispered. "Text Lisa that I found him but don't say where. She'd come running." Fal did so.

"I also just told Sam that you're watching a girl dance too," she joked. I scoffed and made my way over to the table Roy was at. The mechanical servos in his body whirred as he looked over at me.

"Go away," he mumbled.

"No," I answered without the voice changer on. Roy looked up again.

"Perhaps I was being too polite. Screw off," he said.

"Lisa is worried about you. As well as your parents," I retorted.

"Andy?" he asked. I sat down on the other side of the table and removed my disguise. I saw Roy recoil.

"WHAT?!" he said.

"Yes," I answered.

"YOU caused this to happen to me?!" Roy shouted. "YOU are the reason I can't eat, drink or feel anything anymore?!"

"Easy buddy," I started but Roy slammed the table which caused it to splinter and break.

"NO! I WILL NOT TAKE IT EASY BUDDY! YOU DID THIS TO ME! YOU COULDN'T ACCEPT THAT I WAS MOST LIKELY GOING TO WIN THAT RACE SO YOU CHEATED!" he shouted again. At this point most people had noticed our spat and one or two of them exclaimed "Falcon!"

"Why, on God's green Earth, would I attempt to kill you?!" I exclaimed in an angry whisper, trying not to reveal who I was. Roy's anger however, was not to be reasoned with at the moment and he shouted "LOOK EVERYONE! HE'S BACK TO FINISH THE JOB! IMAGINE THIS MY BEST FR-" before I lost my temper and delivered a fiery back hand to his face. It even caused his head to spin around a few times before stopping. Roy's eyes turned a red color as he adjusted his head to face me again.

"THINK Roy!" I demanded. "Lisa straight up told me that she still loved you."

"YOU SPOKE TO HER?! DID YOU TAKE HER FROM ME?!" Roy shouted insanely and aimed a punch at me. I didn't duck in time and it caught me in the shoulder. Which hurt. A lot. Then he grabbed me and lifted me in the air with my lapels.

"YOU JUST COULDN'T ACCEPT LISA LIKED ME OVER YOU AND YOU WANTED ME OUT OF THE PICTURE! I REMEMBER YOU STARING AT HER WHEN WE WERE IN COLLEGE!" Roy yelled while squeezing my windpipe closed. See now that was a lie. I never liked Lisa in the same way I liked Sam. But still, I needed to do something to stop Roy from choking me out.

"Da-daughter," I choked. "Your daughter wouldn't want her dad to be a killer." Roy's grip slackened.

"Daughter?" he asked in a lower volume than before.

"Yes," I managed to say.

"No…NO! YOU'RE LYING!" Roy roared and threw me out of the nearby window where I smashed into the neighboring building and I slumped on the ground. That was rather painful due to the fact that Roy was now half robot. Roy appeared in the opening.

"I'll go back just because I must know if what you're saying is true but if you're lying to me about ANYTHING, I will find you and I will kill you for what you have done to me, friend." Roy said and walked away. I got up, dusted myself off and flicked a credit chip at the owner of the pub.

"Sorry about the mess," I muttered and started limping away. I dialed Lisa as I started to make my way back to the Blue Falcon which was parked a few blocks away.

"Lisa," I grunted while still in some pain.

"Yes?" she answered.

"Good news. Found him and he's going back home to you. Bad news. He believes I caused the accident. Oh and he knows you're having a daughter."

"I'll talk to him. I'll make him see reason. Thank you Andy." Lisa responded. I could hear a sniff in the background before she hung up. But let me tell you, the night's fun was not ending there. I saw someone standing right on top of it. He looked an awful lot like me too. He looked over at the sound of my approach and I got a full look at him. He was dressed eerily like me except his main colors were red and purple. He wore a red jacket and pants, purple gloves, silver boots with a skull pattern and a purple helmet also with a skull pattern on it. The guy smiled and I was hit with a feeling of recognition. But it couldn't be. It made no sense.

"Falcon! You've come to die! I needn't have wasted time looking for you then," the guy said…in my father's voice. No…no way. My dad was dead. This couldn\t be happening.

"Surprised to see me? After all, I am you" the guy said and took off his helmet. I gasped. It WAS my father. Right down to the smallest detail. I was trying to wrap my head around this but my "father" began talking again after putting on his helmet.

"We are not so different you and I. We share DNA. Although I am much, MUCH superior in every way. I am your clone. Breed to serve the Dark Million Organization. I am known as Blood Falcon!" he explained. Oh ok no. That's fine. Just an evil clone of my father running around doing evil stuff. Great. Good. THAT'S JUST WHAT I WANTED. Then something dawned on me.

"Wait a minute…YOU caused the crash and framed me didn't you?" I said angrily. Blood Falcon laughed evilly. Before I could do anything, he tossed something at me which binded my arms and legs to my side. It was sort of an energy attack.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" I shouted, trying to break free but it was no use. Whatever this energy thing was even cut off my comms with Fal. Dammit! I watched as Blood Falcon attached something to the Blue Falcon and it started beeping ominously.

"Ever see that 20th century movie Speed?" he said after jumping down and hoisting me to a standing position. "As soon as you start moving, the bomb activates. You go under 800 kmph and that's it for the famous Captain Falcon!" I continued to struggle against my bindings as Blood Falcon tossed me into the pilots chair.

"It seems you don't have a lot of road to do anything! You and the Blue Falcon can die together! Buh-bye now! I have some family research to catch up on!" he said. The Blue Falcon roared to life when it sensed that I had returned to the pilot seat.

"No wait!" I pleaded with the machine but it was too late. The Blue Falcon sped off while Blood Falcon looked on.

Good news. I managed to finally break free of the energy binding that held me in place. Bad news, there's a freaking BOMB on my machine that would explode if I went under 800! Not good!

"ANDY! What happened?! Oh my goodness!" Fal stated.

"Fal, find me someplace where I can go fast! Like really fast!" I pleaded and accelerated to 800. This was incredibly dangerous to do in the area I was in. Like you have no idea. I nearly caused a lot of accidents.

"The out of order highway! Hit the next left! NOW!" Fal ordered and I did so. The highway thankfully was pretty empty but that must be because it was under construction. I quickly pulled up a map and saw I had about 50000 meters to come up with a plan all while keeping my speed above 800. I engaged my piloting abilities to the maximum potential. I swerved around other vehicles. I took turns effectively. I used my boost power sparingly all while scrambling to find a way to remove this bomb.

"How bad is Sam freaking out right now," I asked.

"She's at work this evening, remember? She was just dropping off some take out for you because she loves you so much," Fal answered.

"Oh yeah," I replied. That's good. I really didn't need her screaming at me to do something at the moment. I was running out of ideas and road fast. I nearly lost control and slammed into the wall when a nasty corkscrew turn blindsided me. Then I saw it. A construction hook placed conveniently over a jump from a non completed part of the road. That could work. I did some quick calculations and adjusted my speed accordingly with Fal's help. The Blue Falcon broke through the road closed sign effortlessly and took the jump at a high speed. I prayed to every deity I knew of to have the bomb hit the construction hook…which it did. The bomb was removed from the Blue Falcon with a satisfying metal clang and I saw it fall into the water below. It exploded behind me as I safely landed on the other side of the broken road and sped off towards Falcon House.

Getting there took about 20 minutes from where I was. I did have to take a few back roads to avoid unwanted attention. I got to Falcon House right at closing time and used the back/employee entrance. Most of the staff was already gone save for Aunt DJ, Aunt Josslyn and Sam who were doing some last minute closing duties. Just seeing both of my aunts still safe was enough for me. DJ saw me first, smiled for a second before realizing the state I was in.

"Andy? Sweetie, what happened?" she ordered. I took off my helmet and slumped into a table. I told the three of them everything that had happened that evening. I began with finding and fighting with Roy.

"Oh my god!" Aunt DJ said after a few minutes into the story.

"It gets worse. I found the guy who caused the accident. He…he…looks just like dad," I managed to get out. Aunt DJ swore loudly. Damn. I haven't heard her do that in quite a while.

"Son of a….I knew it! I KNEW they wanted that DNA for an ulterior motive! Dammit, dammit, DAMMIT" she yelled. Aunt Josslyn had to put a calming hand on her to calm her down.

"He knows," I said. "He knows dad has a sister now too. Perhaps he knows about me or Jody too. Can…can you stay at the lair for a while…just so I know you're safe. Please." I was crying at this point. Someone had used my father's DNA to frame me for my best friend's accident. Aunt Josslyn answered this question.

"Of course we will. Muffins might not be happy with the lack of windows but as long as there's a lunatic parading around as Doug, we'll stay there." she said reassuringly. Aunt DJ, after calming down, agreed.

"What happened to Roy?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. He says he was going to see if I was lying or something," I said and wiped my face.

"Andy, I have good news," Fal's voice said from my helmet speaker. Usually, that was over my ears but since it was on the table everyone else could hear it.

"What?" I asked.

"Well, I decided to record your interaction with Roy in order to send it to Lisa after you concluded talking to him. Also, before I lost the ability to speak with you, I was able to record your interaction with that Blood Falcon character," she said.

"Show us. Now," Aunt DJ said rather harshly. I pressed a button on my gauntlet which in turn allowed the recorded video to play out via an AR screen projected on the wall nearby. I watched as I confronted Blood Falcon and clenched my fist when he revealed his face.

"You. Bastards!" Aunt DJ shouted upon seeing the face of her long deceased brother laughing maniacally. "Andrew Douglas Lemming. You track and take down that MONSTER by any means necessary. ANY means. Do you hear me?!" Geez. Use of my middle name. That hadn't been used on me for a while. The last time I remember Aunt DJ doing that was when I got caught cheating on a test in high school. Not my proudest moment. Don't do that kids. Sometimes, it is ok to just take an L but don't make it become a recurring thing. I put my hand on Aunt DJ's shaking body.

"That's not Douglas Lemming on the screen. That is the work of the organization he died trying to take down. I will take on anybody, anytime. Especially those that think that they can masquerade as a noble man like my father," I said. Wow. That was a bit of unexpected rhetoric. Even for me. Honestly…it reminded me of my dad. He sometimes talked like that just to make my mom smile. Aunt DJ looked into my face with immense love and affection and she gave me a hug. I felt Sam join in later.

Watch your back Blood Falcon. The REAL successor of Captain Falcon is coming for you.