Chapter 11 – Howdy, Stranger!
*NOTE – Here you are at last, folks! The long awaited Chapter 11 of 'Oddworld: Al's Oddysee.' It's only three weeks now until 'Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty' hits the cyber-shelfs and everybody buys it. But don't fret! The story's still got a long way to go. Enjoy!*
Without a moment's hesitation, I dived towards Stranger, whipping his crossbow away from him. It clattered to the floor, and he turned away from Fope to look towards me. He made a low growl, and then jumped. I turned and ran, as quickly as I could in the opposite direction.
"I'm comin' for you, slig!" He yelled after me. "You're gonna regret doin' that!" I looked back momentarily, but when I turned back, a low hanging tree branch struck me in the face.
It must have been about half an hour later, when I came round. Fope was knelt beside me, but Stranger was long gone.
"What happened to him?" I asked.
"Oh, that's just what he's like." Fope replied. "You're OK, aren'tcha?" I glanced around, realising that we were not in the same place as where I'd hit the tree. In fact, we were indoors now. But not at Fope's house. Oh no. We were inside some sort of… bounty store.
"Why are we here?" I said to Fope, wearily.
"Well, I figured that the Clakkerz have probably seen Stranger." She said back. "They might know where he's gone."
Now, since I'd met Fope, I'd had my doubts, as anyone would. But now I began to really think about it. And then it dawned on me. The empty pen, back at the farm. The single, magnificent Steef, the rusted mechanical legs. Fope was not trying to help me. Anything but, in fact. She was trying to capture me, and Stranger knew. He knew that she'd captured a Steef already, so he wanted to end her before she did any more. She must've already captured a slig before, and… no. She HAD captured a slig before. And she'd killed it.
I pushed Fope away from me and stood up. I headed for the door and ran from the bounty store. I didn't even think to look back. But who was she? Who was she working for, what was her real name? Was she insane? Was I insane? I'd have to think that over later, but for now, I ran. And I didn't stop. I kept on running until my lungs could not bear it any more. I looked around, and realised that I was now lost.
"What am I going to do now?" I thought to myself. This entire journey had been a disaster. I'd shot innocent Mudokons, dived from a moving train, been taken in by a kidnapper, and attacked by Wolvarks. And now, I was in the middle of Western Mudos, wondering where to go now. How would I get to Ma Spa now? How would I reach Vykkers Labs 25, and save Abe? I didn't even have a plan. It was hopeless.
"You lost, slig?" Came a voice from behind me. I turned to see Stranger, magnificent as ever. Although he wasn't attacking me this time. In fact, he was quite alright.
For a few precious moments, we simply stared, eye to eye at each other, neither of us speaking a word. Finally, I spoke.
"You knew, didn't you? About Fope?"
He replied quietly. "She's not called Fope."
"What is she called, then?" I asked.
"I… I don't know." He replied. "But I do know this. She isn't who she says she is. She doesn't want to help you. She says she does but she doesn't. What she really wants is to get into Vykkers Labs 25. I assume that's where you were going? Well, she's been trying to break in for a long time."
"Break in?" I gasped. "But why?"
"The Grubbs were once a proud race, populating the whole of Western Mudos. They were such a huge race, some of the began to migrate to the Eastern side of the continent. Including her family. But when the Glukkons evolved to their optimum, when they began to industrialise… her family were taken from her. It was the prefect gimmick for Rupture Farms. 'Limited Edition: Tasty Grubb!' But for her, it was the slaughter of everyone she loved." I was finally beginning to understand now.
A few minutes later, we were walking, in which direction I was unsure. But we had been talking for the entire journey. Stranger had told me how the Grubb had moved back to the West, changed her name to Fope, and began to… collect. Paramites and Scrabs were fine to start with, but she wanted more. Steefs and other rare animals. Soon, she wanted Gabbits, Sligs… Glukkons. She wanted more than she could have, felt that she could pay back Oddworld's corporate greed by taking a sample of every species into captivity. Her first attempt was a break-in at Meep Herder Village. She'd rustled a few Meep and snuck into the Pud's office. When she tried to catch him, he'd turned the slogs on her, and she'd barely escaped with her life. She became a wanted criminal after that.
"So, then what happened?" I asked.
"She decided to lay low for a while. And then she came up with an idea. She knew of a project run by Vykkers Labs. They had been trying to master time travel." I was shocked to hear this. Time machines?
"And are these at Vykkers Labs 25, by any chance?" If they were, that must've been why I was told to go there, by the Vykker at the Feeco. Depot. That time machine was my ticket to saving Abe.
"Yes." Stranger said. "She was planning to travel back in time, to when the Glukkons were more vulnerable. Make it easier for her to catch one. And that's why when she found out you were going there, she decided to keep you alive. For the time being, at least." What I was hearing and what I had been through now made so much sense. I would have to make it to Ma Spa alone, without Fope. She could no longer be trusted.
"What's your name, by the way?" Stranger asked.
"It's Grike." I replied. "Security Commander Grike."