Chapter Thirty-Five
Violating the Program
On the afternoon of October the 7th, Mr. Litwak and Albert Rae were seated in the former's living room. They had just finished their lunch, and were awaiting word from Daniel. The arcade's resident repairman had arrived back in town two days before, and had learned about the situation before a day had passed. After a conference with Mr. Litwak, it was agreed he would make one final effort to save the games. He had headed down early that morning, and Mr. Litwak was already starting to feel anxious.
"I'd hate to disappoint the patrons," said Mr. Litwak. "They love those games. Why else should they come back?"
"Did you see those stacks of 'get well' cards?" Albert asked.
"Why yes," said Mr. Litwak. "I read every one, even the semi-illegible ones."
"They love the games, yes," said Albert. "But they also come back for you."
"Me?"
"Yes, you. You and your staff are among the friendliest and most personable workers of any business in Wilberforce. I thought you would have guessed that by now."
Mr. Litwak blinked, surprised. "I figured it was just common courtesy, what I do."
"We're old-school, you and I," Albert replied. "We remember those days of riding bikes to the local comic store, where you knew the names of the owners. You'll still catch hints of that around here, sometimes elsewhere, but across the nation…those days are done."
"I guess I sort of knew that, subconsciously."
The phone rang, and Mr. Litwak stood up and answered it.
"Yes?" he said. "What? Oh- that's great! Thanks a ton. No, thank you!"
"What happened?" Albert asked as Mr. Litwak hung up.
"He couldn't save Clash of Chaos 2, but every other game is up and working again. We can open tomorrow!"
"How did he do that?" Albert asked, incredulous. "I mean, did you tell him what happened when I tried?"
"I did when we met yesterday," said Mr. Litwak. "He didn't know what to make of it, but he said he'd try anyway. And it worked. We're back in business!" Mr. Litwak spun about, only to stop moments later to catch his breath.
"I…I'm forgetting," he said. "I'm sixty years old. I won't be able to do this for too many more years. I'll have to start grooming a successor."
"What about Johnson?" Albert asked. "He seems a dedicated guy."
"That he is, Albert. That he is. I might choose him, if he sticks around. But the doctor estimated I have about five more years before I need to call it quits. I expect I can get someone in that time." He smiled. "And if it's Johnson, so much the better. He was playing my games as a kid back in the 80s. We go way back."
Litwak's Arcade re-opened amidst much rejoicing among the gamers of Wilberforce. They poured into the arcade as soon as its doors were open. There were new faces as well, people whose interest had been piqued by The Art of the Arcade. So many customers were there that Mr. Litwak was hard pressed to greet every new wave of patrons, and had to recruit one or two of his employees into the act as well.
By the time the arcade closed, Mr. Litwak breathed a sigh, both of relief and contentment: relief that his arcade, his joy, had survived and contentment that so many had partaken of that joy. He watched as the last of his employees departed the building, until only he and Albert were left.
Albert- the greatest friend in the world. God bless him for staying so long at my side.
"Well, time to close up shop," said Mr. Litwak.
"Not yet, please."
Mr. Litwak froze. "Was that you who said that, Albert?"
Albert looked equally startled. "I didn't say anything."
"Then who spoke?"
"Look behind you," said the voice.
Mr. Litwak and Albert turned to see the Fix-It Felix Jr. cabinet behind them.
"Bless me, the cabinet's talking," said Mr. Litwak. "I think I need to see the doctor again."
"No, not the cabinet," said the voice. "It's me, Ralph." The wrecker's sprite strode into view and looked at them.
At this, Albert and Mr. Litwak nearly jumped out of their skins.
"I think I might be going senile, Albert," said Mr. Litwak.
"No, please listen," said Ralph. "But first, look around you."
Mr. Litwak and Albert glanced around the arcade, only to yelp in shock. On every screen, the game characters were busily milling about. Blue lights passed through the wires. Several characters paused to wave through the screens at the arcade owner and his friend.
"Don't be afraid," said Ralph. "You're not going nuts. This is real."
"So those blue lights really were…." Mr. Litwak's voice trailed off.
He listened as Ralph told him of the characters' daily lives, of how they could travel between other games via the wires. When Ralph had finished speaking, Mr. Litwak and Albert were silent.
"That explains some of the weirder things that have happened," said Mr. Litwak after a few moments. "Like Q-Bert popping up in your game, for instance."
" #&&*!" came a voice from within Fix-It Felix Jr.
"It's Q-Bert!" Albert exclaimed with a grin on his face. "Heya buddy, I remember you!"
"$$$%%," Q-Bert replied.
"I've never understood what he says," Albert muttered.
"But after thirty-seven years," said Mr. Litwak, "why tell us now?"
"Sometimes," said Ralph, "sometimes…things happen. When you're whole world is in danger of being shut down, you start to count your blessings. You've been a good owner, Mr. Litwak. And your friend there was always good to us as well. We all talked it over, and we decided you guys could be trusted with our secret. And we just wanted to say…thanks. Thanks for being there all these years."
"You're…you're welcome," Mr. Litwak said. He turned to go. "Come on Albert."
"Hey, just a stinking minute you two," said a voice from the Sugar Rush cabinet. "Are you really going to go without saying goodbye to your old pals?"
Albert and Mr. Litwak turned towards Sugar Rush. Their eyes widened at what they saw.
"I think I'm going to faint, Albert," said Mr. Litwak. "It's Otis and Floyd. It's Otis and Floyd!"
"I see them," said Albert. "I see them, but I don't believe it. I thought you said Pong broke down?"
"We made it out before the cabinet was hauled away," said Otis. "So here we are."
"Living with me!" an excited voice piped in. Vanellope somersaulted into view, grinning broadly.
"We're in the stands with this kid's fans during the cutscenes now," said Floyd, pointing briefly with his handle towards Vanellope. "So don't be surprised if you see us here during gameplay."
"Oh no, I'll be delighted!" Mr. Litwak exclaimed. "Listen, I've got to go now, but I'll see you guys in the morning, all right?"
"Sure thing," said Floyd.
"Wow," said Albert, when he and Mr. Litwak had entered the car. "I wasn't expecting that. Who'd ever believe us?"
"Nobody," said Mr. Litwak, "which is why you and I are going to keep it to ourselves. Besides, they only wanted us to know."
"Alright, but it'll be hard to restrain myself once I get home this Saturday."
"Let the fear of being seen as crazy keep you quiet," said Mr. Litwak, turning on the engine and pulling out of the parking space.
"That'll do the trick for sure," said Albert.
Both men burst out laughing at this remark. When their laughter had subsided, they smiled.
The smiles stayed on their faces all the way back to the house.
Ralph strode away from the screen to where Felix had been standing. The handyman patted his magic hammer. "A good day's work," he said.
"And a fine day of shooting on my part," said Sergeant Calhoun, walking towards them from the wire entrance. "Never expected blasting cybugs would be such a relief."
"You're better suited to it than I am, ma'am" said Felix.
"I hate the things," Ralph muttered.
"Hey guys, hey guys, hey guys!"
It was Vanellope. The little racer was hurrying toward them, glitching excitedly. A large basket was in her hand, a white cloth covering its top.
"What's that," Ralph asked as she halted breathlessly beside them.
"A surprise for everybody here," said Vanellope. She set the basket on the ground and with a melodramatic flourish of her hand, pulled the cloth away.
"Have some candy, you guys!"
Ralph stared at her. Vanellope clapped a hand to her mouth. "Oh…what did I just say? That sounded so weird coming from me."
"Never mind," said Ralph, smiling "It's the thought that counts."
Vanellope grinned sheepishly. "Right, right, of course." She turned several cartwheels, shouting all the while: "We're alive, we're alive!"
"Uh, Vanellope?" said Ralph. "We can go ahead and eat now, right?"
Vanellope paused in the middle of a handstand. "Sure, right, go ahead. Oh, it's so good to be alive!"
She tumbled onto her back, laughing hysterically, while Sergeant Calhoun carefully divided the contents of the basket into portions.
"Got to ration everything properly," she said by way of answer to Felix's curious expression.
"Always the soldier," Ralph muttered.
"What was that?" Calhoun asked.
"Nothing, nothing," Ralph said, holding up his hands.
"Have it your way," said Sergeant Calhoun, turning back to her task.
Vanellope had stopped laughing. She sat up and looked about at each of them. "So many bad memories," she said. "But so many good ones too." She smiled. "Thank you, all of you."
"For what?" Felix asked.
"For being my friends."
Thank you for reading the story. I hope you have enjoyed it.
~ crankyman7