18. Preparing For Battle
"What's going on?" Jerry demanded. Vanellope dashed out of the room, heading back for the garage. As they ran, Ralph asked Jerry, "Vanellope never told you her backstory?" Jerry shook his head.
Ralph launched into an abridged version of Vanellope's life as they jumped into the Toffee Truck, a monster truck large enough for the three of them.
Ralph managed to finish the account of the CyBug battle by the time Vanellope rolled into Game Central Station. The full weight of the situation hit Jerry. Vanellope frantically wrenched the steering wheel in the direction of Hero's Duty and hit the accelerator, game characters diving out of the way of the candy-coated vehicle of mayhem.
The Surge Protector flashed in front of them and began, "Now hold on there miss," when Vanellope screamed, "Out of the way! Security alert!"
Surge flickered uneasily. "Is it those-" Ralph nodded grimly. He quietly stepped out of their way, hitting buttons to round up the arcade's security force.
Vanellope pushed the vehicle to its limit as it blasted down the wire into the barracks, Jerry and Ralph holding on for dear life. Sergeant Calhoun looked up, annoyed. Her expression changed when she saw her friends' grim and worried faces.
"What's goin' on, guys?"
Vanellope was hyperventilating. "Sarge, they're… they're back!"
"Whoa, whoa. Who's this they you're talking about?"
"A CyBug somehow survived, and it resurfaced in Sugar Rush." Ralph explained.
"What?! That's impossible, Wreck-It!" Calhoun exclaimed. "Didn't your game just undergo a data transfer recently, Vanellope?"
Vanellope nodded and gulped. "I don't know how, but it's there!"
Calhoun hit the public address system. "ALPHA PLATOON, FALL IN! FULL COMBAT GEAR! YOU'VE GOT TWO MINUTES, LADIES!"
Calhoun turned back to Vanellope. "You're sure about this? How long has it been there?"
"I don't know. The attack was just yesterday."
Jerry suddenly thought of something. "Vanellope! Those accidents: the bridge collapse and the avalanche. Could it have been the bug?"
Vanellope recalled the day of the battle and the waves of CyBugs bursting out of the ground as she raced for the finish line. She nodded. "Could have been. That would make it several weeks."
"Impossible! Sugar Rush would have been overrun by now, what with all the eggs!" Calhoun exclaimed. Jerry merely shrugged.
"Have any of you seen it yourself?" she continued.
"No, but the newer racers, added in the upgrade, reported an attack by a 'giant metal bug that chewed up everything in its path'. They were about a half hour's drive from the entrance."
"Alright, that might be the time we need. Does Surge know?"
"Yeah, he's mobilizing the arcade security."
Calhoun turned back to her troops, assembled and decked out in full combat gear.
"All right, pussy willows, we're headin' out to Sugar Rush, but to face a familiar foe. President Von Schweetz reports a sighting and attack by a CyBug. We go in, and we don't leave till every inch of that candy kingdom is free of those filthy bugs! Is that clear?" she barked.
"Yes, ma'am!" they chorused, saluting.
"Lead on, Vanellope." Calhoun looked to Vanellope, but she was shivering. Her memories of the savage creatures had immobilized her, and she clung to Ralph for support. He just held her, his big palms surrounding and enveloping her.
"Can you drive, short stack?" Calhoun turned to Jerry. "Oh, uh, yes… ma'am." Jerry stuttered, slightly intimidated by the steely Sergeant.
"Well, move it, son! We haven't got all day!" That was all the prodding Jerry needed. He leaped into the front seat and gunned the powerful engine. Behind him, the Space Marines mounted up on their cruisers.
They sped into Sugar Rush, where Vanellope, Ralph, and Jerry transferred to Calhoun's shuttle. They reached Gumdrop Gardens in fifteen minutes.
The racers there had finished their rather tense lunch and got back to clearing up the debris from the attack. Calhoun called Vanellope, Jerry, Bubblina, and Amos together.
"Alright kiddos, gimme the rundown."
Bubblina quickly described the attack. "It burst out of the ground from underneath our arena floor and started munching everything in sight. We tried to ward it off, but our weapons just bounced off."
"Describe it. What did it look like?"
"About fifteen feet tall." Calhoun raised an eyebrow.
"Gray skin like thick candy wrappers; so thick we couldn't hurt it even with Gobstopper cannons. Sharp things shaped like Hershey's Kisses all down its back. Knives on its tail. It flew by blowing blue air out of its back." Calhoun raised her other eyebrow.
"But weirdest of all, it could change into the things it ate."
"Sounds like our nemesis has gotten an upgrade," Kohut commented. Calhoun nodded thoughtfully.
"Any idea where it is?"
"Actually, yes! I sent a couple of racers on a foraging mission, before the attack occurred. They spotted it and came straight back." Bubblina replied, beckoning to two girls. She proceeded to introduce them with a minimum of fuss. "Sabelle Sugar Pop; Sugarplum Sherbetfizz. Where did you see the metal creature?"
"Two miles north of here. It was heading north-west when we saw it." Sugarplum replied. Sabelle nodded.
"Is there any clearing a short distance away from here?" Calhoun asked. She intended to keep as many racers safe as possible.
"There's Pastry Plateau four miles north-west. And we have a small clearing in the forest two miles east." Sabelle spoke up.
Calhoun thought quickly. "Alright Alpha Platoon, divide into scouting units of three. We're gonna flush this bogey out." Calhoun commanded.
The cybug hovered above the forest, screeching in pleasure. It had found rich pickings from the humans' habitation. Soft, chewy, and sugary globs of candy… the cybug closed its eyes in satisfaction.
A nearby sound caused it to prick up its sensors. Detecting movement, it flew off silently in the opposite direction.
Calhoun gritted her teeth in frustration. Her team had been combing the woods fruitlessly for more than an hour. She had ringed her men strategically based on the information from Sabelle and Sugar, hoping to drive it to Pastry Plateau where they would engage and destroy it. However, the CyBug refused to be found, seeming to dance skillfully in and out of sensor range. Also, the lack of eggs was confusing.
She stilled her mind and thought, "If I were a CyBug, and I was being chased, what would I do? Well, I'd head away from the searchers, but the forest and my size are a problem." Calhoun reasoned, following a logical pattern of thought.
"Quick blips and evading my crew means that it's moving fast, so it can't be underground. It's in the air above the trees." Calhoun smiled in satisfaction.
"Troops, mount up!" she called into her communicator. "We continue this search in the air!"
"That's it!" the cybug thought. "I've had enough of these people chasing me. If they want me, they're gonna get me."
Taffyta suddenly looked up and covered her ears at a roar so loud it shook the trees. All the racers screamed as the CyBug approached Gumdrop Gardens.
Ralph gasped. "That's not a CyBug. That is a CyBeast!"
Calhoun's battle plan was in tatters. Her forces were divided; more than half her men still in the forest and on foot. Still, she was determined to protect Sugar Rush's citizens. She yelled out, "Soldiers, form a perimeter! Protect civilians at all costs!"
As Rancis ran to Taffyta's side, he saw Swizzle, calmly rummaging through his kart. Rancis yelled, "What are you doin', Swizz?"
Swizzle smirked. "There's finally some real action around here, and I ain't missin' it." he replied, hefting a peppermint axe.
"Are you crazy? You'll get yourself killed!"
"If we die, we just regenerate." He looked round as a shadow fell across him.
"Not if you get eaten, kid." Kohut retorted, loading his blaster. Swizzle paled.
"Uh… eaten?" He chuckled nervously, before tossing his weapon to the floor and running off, screaming as loudly as the girls. Taffyta picked the axe up. Rancis rolled his eyes at Swizzle's antics and loaded his peanut butter shotgun.
The CyBug roared and dived forward. The battle had begun.