Author's Note: An update so soon? What can I say, I have a month off work and my muse is being quite generous. I can't guarantee that all of my updates will be this quick, especially with so many other WIPs, but I'll try to be somewhat consistent. As a reminder, I've really only watched the show up to season 4 so it's only canon compliant up to that. If I get something wrong lore or character-wise that was covered in later seasons, please don't be too hard on me. :)
As always, any and all engagements are appreciated. Thank you so much!
He's weak. He's dying. I have to do it for him. Justice must be served.
The young man gazed at himself in the mirror for a second, studying his light blue eyes. They were calm, like a tranquil pool of sparkling water, a sharp contrast to the chaos that enveloped his mind and darkened his soul. Chaos. He'd always liked that word. There was just something about it that filled him with a sense of euphoria, especially in the way he said it.
The young man took a deep breath and stepped away from the mirror, clasping his hands together.
Chaos. That's exactly what I'll cause. He'll be so proud of me THIS time. He'll ask me to carry on his legacy. He'll appreciate me.
He walked into his bedroom, where his ragged black backpack sat on his bed.
They're in Solaria, having a nice vacation. They don't deserve it. Not at all.
A small dash of anger surged through him at that thought.
But I'm coming. And once I do what has to be done… everything will be as it should have been, all those years ago.
"Hey! Aunt Jackie! Uncle Slider! Coop!" Lauren called, waving her little arms in the air as she stood at the edge of the shallow end of the pool. The three adults paused their conversation to entertain the little girl.
"Are you going to do another trick, Lauren?" Coop asked with a smile.
"Yeah! I call this one the… the…" Lauren paused for a moment before grinning. "The Spinner!"
"Ah, The Spinner. Let's see it!"
Lauren beamed before spinning around in a dizzy circle and then jumping into the pool.
"Woo! That was awesome, Lauren!" Jackie clapped her hands.
"I'm going to swim now. The next show is at… um… ten minutes!"
The adults laughed lightly.
"Looking forward to it." Coop chuckled and then turned back to his son and his fiance. "Anyway, I think that's a wonderful idea. But two weddings is a lot of work… and money."
"Yeah, absolutely. But that's what savings are for. I can also do some cryoxide changes to earn more money." Slider replied, stretching out on his reclined chair.
"I wish we could just have one big wedding, but… there would be no way to explain a bunch of robots and cyborgs to my family." Jackie giggled.
"You mean you haven't told your family about the alternate dimension you travel to on a regular basis?" Coop sniggered.
"Not quite yet." She replied with another giggle.
"I've gotta say, you've managed to balance your time and lives between worlds very well. All of you." Coop said.
"I'm honestly surprised that Lauren hasn't blabbed about it to her kindergarten class." Slider remarked, watching the girl grab a pool noodle. She proceeded to slip it underneath her arms and do the doggie paddle.
"Oh, she has. Her teacher thinks she's just being imaginative." Matt joined the trio, holding a large plastic cup with a red slushie inside of it. Jackie smiled.
"I think I actually did a creative writing piece about Cyberspace back in high school and passed it off as fiction. I wrote about a skateboarding cyborg boy and an evil, vain dictator who wanted to take over his world."
"Yeah, sure… it was fiction." Slider said with a sad smile.
"Well… that evil dictator hasn't been in the picture for years now." Coop said, looking distracted. Jackie wanted to suck her words back up- they hadn't talked about him for months. Their last confrontation hung over each of their heads like a heavy weight. They'd taken him down for good, but the process had been nothing short of scarring, emotionally and physically. Jackie found herself gently grabbing Slider's hand. He gently massaged the back of her hand with his thumb, also running it over her engagement ring. She tried to catch his gaze but he was staring straight ahead, into the blue depths of the pool.
"Well, I think I'm going to go and get whatever Matt has." Coop stood up.
"Okay, pops. But don't miss Lauren's performance." Slider said, and Jackie was relieved to see a smile stretch across his face.
"It's a cherry slush. It's pretty good, but it could use some tequila." Matt said, raising the container in a toasting motion.
"Matthew, must you add tequila to everything you drink here?" Inez walked up, wearing a knitted purple swimsuit coverup that covered a dark blue tankini. Her short brown hair was still soaked from her venture with Lauren in the pool.
"What can I say? I like to have fun on vacation." Her husband replied.
"It's not just on vacation." Jackie jibed, "You add it to all your stuff on earth too."
"I'll admit, I don't know what's so great about alcoholic beverages. I've had a few beers with my coworkers on earth, and I kind of don't see the appeal." Slider said.
"That's because you're a cyborg. It doesn't affect you the way it affects humans." Inez remarked, sitting down on a plastic chair. "At least, that's my theory."
"I mean, you're not wrong." Slider admitted. "I don't think I can get tipsy or anything."
"You don't really have to sleep either. I wish I'd had that superpower during finals." Jackie said.
"Yeah, but I do it anyway. Being up all night gives you too much time to think about things." Slider looked distracted again. "...Like, last night I was up until 2 am just thinking about…" He trailed off.
"What?" Inez asked.
"Erm… well…" Slider visibly swallowed and Jackie squeezed his hand. She knew exactly what he'd been thinking about.
"...Him." She finished for him, "...I was kind of thinking about it last night too. And today."
"It's been years, but the anniversary is coming up." Inez said softly.
"Come on guys, we really don't have to think about it. He's gone." Matt said.
"Matt, he's not gone. Just weak and useless. Until he's not." Slider retorted, "He's survived a power drain before."
"Yeah, but… what we did this time… it seemed pretty permanent."
An uncomfortable silence followed.
"Mommy!" Lauren came running up to them, the water dripping off her body and leaving wet marks on the tan ceramic tiles beneath her feet.
"What is it, Lauren?" Inez asked, her voice still soft. The squad members all chose to focus on the young girl.
"I'm hungry."
Inez glanced up at the plastic clock that hung on the wall of the showering facilities.
"Well, it is almost lunch time. What do you think, guys?"
"Agreed." Matt said.
"I'm just going to wait for my father to come back." Slider said, "But then I'll definitely join you."
"Yeah. I'm staying with Sly." Jackie said, trying to calm the sudden feeling of impending doom that traveled up her spine. She didn't like talking about him. It made her paranoid that he, indeed, was coming back with a greater, more twisted vengeance than ever before.
"Alright. We'll try to get in at that little beachside restaurant. Table for six." Matt said, standing up and taking Lauren's hand. Inez took her other hand and the family walked away. Jackie let out a long sigh once they'd gone, leaning back and putting her forearm over her eyes.
"Jax, it's okay. Matt's right." Slider said after a moment of silence.
"What if he's not? What if he is going to come back?" Jackie knew that she was going into drama queen mode, but she just couldn't stop herself. "He'll come after… oh my God, he'll come after Lauren. Then… when we have a kid… oh no!" Her voice grew shrill.
"Jax." Slider said gently, knowing full well how to deal with his fiancee's dramatic moments. "He can't touch us, or our child, on earth. If he… does come back, we can hunker down there until we figure out how to deal with him again."
Jackie visibly relaxed, but her brown eyes were still frantic. Slider rubbed her hand with his thumb again in a soothing gesture.
"We have a good future, Jackie. You have my word that I will do anything and everything in my power to keep you safe and happy."
A slow, nervous smile stretched across her face. Her fiance wasn't an incredibly affectionate person- he often shied away from PDA and doing "couplely" things in public, but when they were alone he allowed himself to be vulnerable and open.
"Hey, what'd I miss?" Coop walked back over to them, drink in hand.
"Oh, nothing." Jackie lied, "Matt and Inez are getting us a table at that little beachside restaurant."
"That sounds good. Are you going to be ready to go there soon?"
"Yeah, pops, we were just waiting for you. Come on, Jax." Slider stood up and Jackie followed suit. As the three ventured down to the beach, that feeling of dread crept up Jackie's spine again.
They're happy. They're HAPPY with what they did. It makes me sick. They live their lives like they did absolutely nothing wrong.
He sat there, watching them from a distance, the light from the sun-o-sphere toasting his pale face.
How dare they. I hate that… that GIRL most of all. She shouldn't exist. Continuing a legacy that never should have been. Oh, so noble. The protectors of Cyberspace. Smart. Resilient. I HATE IT. I HATE THEM.
He gripped the straps of his backpack until his knuckles turned white.
Happiness. Peace. All at the expense of another's livelihood. Well, soon they won't be happy. No peace. Just pain. Pain they deserve. Little girl, you don't know it yet, but soon you won't be feeling anything. No happiness, no peace, no pain. Just eternal darkness. And then… I'll pluck the rest of you off, little by little, one by one. I did it once before, but I failed. This time I WILL NOT. I'll start with the girls first. Then comes the old man, then the guys. Each one a little different. But the end result is the same: they'll be gone. And he'll be proud of me.
He woke up from yet another dreamless sleep, barely able to open his eyes. He took in his surroundings in an effort to gather his mind. There was a dresser, a small TV on a wobbly stand, an equally wobbly bedside table with a glass of water on it, and… her. She flashed him a smile and took his hand but he yanked it away, a feeling of loathing coming over him hard and fast . It wasn't uncommon for him to feel loathsome towards the woman he also called the love of his life, but it certainly was contradictory.
"Oh, Hackie. It's time for another recharge. Remember I told you before you took your nap…?" She said cheerfully. Hacker grumbled and rubbed his eyes, pain rising up in his chest as he moved his thin arms.
"You know it won't make a difference." He growled, rolling over and pulling the covers over his head. Wicked yanked them off in one swift motion.
"But Hackie, there have been some new developments since we last-"
"I know that the earth brats are here again, with their pathetic spawn. I do not need reminding."
"Yes, Hackie, but… well…" Wicked trailed off.
"What, Wicked?"
"Boss, you're awake!" Buzz walked into the room, munching on his favorite food: a simple cake donut with pink frosting and rainbow sprinkles.
"Not for long, you sniveling duncebucket." Hacker snapped, "I'm going to recharge, listen to whatever my consort has to say, then I'm going right back to bed."
Wicked made a face. She didn't like that word, but she didn't dare express it. Despite her feisty, blunt nature, she didn't like to argue with her longtime companion.
"Oh yes, boss, I got your chair all ready for you. Nice and cozy." The rotund robot said.
"Yeah. Your chair's all ready, boss." Delete piped up. Hacker grunted as he swung his short legs over the side of the bed.
"Take me there." He snapped at Wicked, who immediately took his arm.
"Okay, here we go." She said reassuringly, trying hard not to match his energy. She wasn't in the mood for an argument. The cyborg's joints creaked as he walked, and his breathing was shallow. It took a good five minutes before they arrived at his recharging chair and he fell onto it with a grunt. Each charge lasted him roughly thirty minutes- fifteen on a bad day. Thirty short minutes to be productive. Sleeping did next to nothing to supplement his power usage and rapidly decaying charging mechanism- it was comparable to an earth smartphone with a weak lithium ion battery. But nobody would help him. Not after all he'd done.
Nobody would allow him to resynchronize anywhere in Cyberspace; nor would they let him fix his failing charging mechanism. He was absolutely helpless, and he despised that fact. The Hacker did not like being helpless. He felt a brief prick of euphoria as energy started surging through him; a small smile stretched across his face. Wicked was delighted to see it, but it was another thing she dared not mention.
"So, Hackie… about those earthlings…"
Hacker turned to look at her, his gaze turning fiery and the smile on his face fading.
"...They're currently in Solaria. Coop is with them."
"This information is relevant to me how?" Hacker inquired lowly.
"Wellllll, I was kind of thinking I could go over there and cause some mischief… or, rather… chaos." The witch said with a wide smile. Hacker opened his mouth to say something sharp in response, but his smile returned, slow and malicious.
"The girl." He said, "The offspring of those meddling earth brats. Bring her to me."
Wicked beamed and clapped her hands.
"Oh Hackie-poo, I LOVE it when you're malicious and positively twisted!" She sang the last word and twirled in her purple cape.
"Yes… it's about time I let those brats know that I'm still a threat. Of course… I will need some more assistance. An… apprentice, if you will. But who could ever be up to the task…? That is the question."
Author's Note: I'm debating changing the rating of this fic from "T" to "M". I reread this in my editing phase (no beta, we die like men), and I thought, "Well, shit, this is darker than I initially thought it would be." So yeah. I'll write the next chapter and then decide if the rating needs to change. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I hope I didn't get anything glaringly wrong. Again, if I did, be nice about it. But I likely won't change it; as I said, it's canon compliant only up to season 4. In fact, I may put that in the tags on AO3 just in case. But yeah, thanks for reading! Any and all engagements are appreciated!
-LiviLu 3