Chapter Four- Trip
"THE RACERS ARE READY!" cheered the voice over the intercom "READY! SET! GO!"
And with a blast of multicolored smoke and sparkles, the candy racers took off! King Candy lead the pack for a moment but out off to his side came Taffyta, pink smoking blazing from her tail pipe. She looked back at her ruler, giving him a teasing smile.
"C'mon King! I thought ya were faster than that!" she giggled before hitting the gas harder.
The monarch gave the girl a powerful smile but once she was out of view, that smile changed.
VERY QUICKLY.
"Don't act so smart, ya lil brat!" the man hissed to himself, switching gears "Ya just got a lucky th-art, that's all!"
King Candy sped away, leaving the others in the dust as he began catching up with Taffyta. In the crowd, the candy people were going WILD! The race was getting faster and faster, more dangerous, more risky!
"MORE ACTION!" said a cheerful voice, her hood pulled over her face "GO TAFFYTA!"
Taffyta was rounding her way through Brownie Junction, a rather nice place to stop, this is if you don't mind the massive brownie batter landslides and chocolate lava pits!
"Heh, easy!" Taffyta said, licking her chops. She spied a power-up ahead, the thing just calling for her. She stepped on the gas again, running right into it.
*WHIP IT GOOD!*
"Just what the doctor called for!" Taffyta cackled, aiming her gun forward. Just as she did, a huge chocolate geyser erupted but the kid knew what to do. Aiming high, she shoot a large spray of cream in the mouth of the geyser which succeeded in plugging it up and cooling it down! Just to be cheeky, Taffyta stuck a finger out and got a dollop of the cream, putting it in her mouth.
"Mmmm! Sweet!"
Back with the crowd, Taffyta's team cheered loudly, Vanellope unable to hold back her excitement as she glitched here and there! Thank goodness no one really cared enough about her to pay attention.
"YEAH! YOU SHOW 'EM! GO! GO! GO!"
Taffyta was in the lead but King Candy was catching up fast. The monarch scowled, his blood boiling that he couldn't catch up with a child.
"That's it!" he growled to himself "Now we're playing things MY way!"
The monarch checked behind himself to make sure that no one was following and as the two entered a cookie cave, he made his move!
He dug into his pockets and pulled out one of his many stolen power ups!
"While I do find your driving skillths IMPRESSIVE, ya have another lesson ta learn my dear Thaffyta!"
He made his choice; now it was time to throw.
"YOUR KING IS ALWAYS NUMBER ONE!"
King Candy hurled the power up in front of him but made sure as not to make it seem like he had tossed it from behind the racer. Taffyta was much too focused on getting out of the cave to notice the thing as it suddenly activated on a crag above her.
*CARAMEL CRISP!*
The racer looked up and gasped at the bright light, looking up just in time to see that the entire roof of the cave was now being covered with hard caramel brittle, the spiky stuff becoming too heavy for the roof to hold!
"Oh no! Just when things were running so smoothly!"
Taffyta began to dodge like mad to outrun the falling caramel spikes and cookie crumbs but as she did, she was finding it increasingly difficult to keep her car under control. The crowd outside could only watch in horror as they saw the racer swerving. Vanellope gasped, glitching in fear.
"Aw man, what's goin' on?!"
The strawberry racer screamed but as she looked ahead, she could see the light at the end of the tunnel, the GOOD kind!
"Oh thank GOODNESS!" the girl said, punching the gas as she hit a hard right. If she timed this right, she would be able to do a perfect spin to recalibrate herself once she got out of the cave and regain her lead!
It was all a matter of timing! That's all.
"Three, two, ONE!"
Taffyta hit the gas as hard as she could, her little feet almost going RIGHT through the floor but she made the perfect slide, just as a sharp piece of caramel almost hit her in the face.
"WHEEEEEEW!"
Now it was time to realign herself! The finish line was so close! SO CLOSE!
CLUNK!
Taffyta screamed as she heard and felt something give way under her car! All of sudden, she found she had no control at all!
"H-HEY! WHAT-!?"
The racer gripped the wheel as best she could but at her speed, there was no way to regain control! She was heading right towards the stands!
"GET OUTTA THA WAY! GET OUTTA THA WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!"
"T-Taffyta?" Vanellope choked, her eyes wide as dinner plates as the car was coming right for her.
Taffyta was spinning like a top, the only thing holding her in her car at this point being her seat belt. She continued to scream, wanting nothing more than to regain control but she just couldn't! Hot sparks spilled from the bottom of her vehicle as the engine began to smoke! She crashed through the first guardrail, candy people fleeing for their lives and then….
She looked.
Vanellope was five feet in front of her, frozen in place and stunned beyond belief.
Taffyta could feel her heart stop as time seemed to slow down.
"MOVE! PLEASE MOVE!"
GLITCH!
In that split second, Vanellope managed to half glitch half jump out of the way in time out of panic, the car FINALLY hitting the crowd stands and EXPLODING in a massive eruption of pink and black smoke! Car parts rained down from the sky as did several candy people but through it all, a small raven haired racer sat by, having been knocked down by the shock. Her eyes could not come unglued from the crash, she was just too horrified.
"TAFFYTA! TAFFYTA!"
"KING CANDY WINS!" yelled the announcer, the crowd going wild as the monarch crossed the finish line, but Vanellope didn't care about him.
She just wanted to see if Taffyta was okay.
A mass of candy people began to approach the still smoking car but Vanellope pushed her way through, glitching horribly "M-M-Move! G-G-get outta the w-w-way!"
She coughed as the smoke got into her eyes and nose but she had to see if Taffyta was alright!
"Taffyta! TAFFYTA ANSWER ME PLEASE!"
A moan. A horrible, horrible moan.
Vanellope gasped as she glitched again, pushing her way through only to see Taffyta, slumped over the seat with her face on the steering wheel.
"Oh my gobs-!"
The strawberry racer moaned as she looked up, seeing the blurry image of Vanellope before her. She smiled but her friend could tell she was weakening fast.
"S-sorry I didn't win….."
And with that, the racer finally passed out. Vanellope gasped as she turned around, frantic for help.
"HELP! HELP! WE NEED A DOCTOR!"
"We need a plan…." said Mouse, her arms crossed "I have a feelin' SOMETHIN' is gonna happen while this fool tries to tell his 'story' and I want to make sure we're ready for it."
"Ya mean our guns aren't enough?" Markowski snickered, charging up his blaster.
"You laugh now, but you gotta remember, big fella! This Turbo guy? He's a sneak bas-!"
"ATTENTION!" yelled Calhoun, the two privates standing at attention "While I'm glad to see that you two are taking into caution how much of a rat Turbo is, you have to remember NOT to let him know we're suspicious of him. I don't want him to have the gratification of knowing that he's playing us."
"Huh, you think you're the only one?" chuckled Mouse "By now that the entire arcade is buzzing about this confession thing of his, what can we do?"
"We'll let him confess…." The sergeant said, walking past the two "And right now, the person we need is right here."
"Who?" Markowski asked, looking around.
"Down here, sir…." A small voice rang. The big man looked down, seeing Taffyta Muttonfudge standing below him.
"Her?!"
"He said he wanted me…" the racer said in a haughty tone "Then he's gonna get me."
"Just be careful solider…" Calhoun glanced back "I don't want anyone else getting' hurt."
Taffyta looked around nervously, the coldness of the game starting to get to her already "Erf, you're not gonna leave me alone back there with him, are ya?"
Calhoun shook her head "Not a chance….we'll be close by but out of sight from Turbo. The guy is might pull the silent treatment if I'M around but…." The woman suddenly stopped, stooping down to Taffyta's height "If he tries anything…" she whispered "You are free to shoot him in the face!"
Calhoun then handed Taffyta a gun; a LARGE gun.
Taffyta struggled to lift the thing up, smiling nervously "Er, maybe YOU should keep this!"
The two made their way down to the prison halls, each and every cell empty….
Save for one.
At the end of the hall was a gray racer, a mop of messy black hair sitting atop his head. His back was turned from the others, his face deep in a car magazine.
"Oh yeah…" the man snickered "Sleek AN' functional! Justh tha way I like 'em! Woo bay-BEE!"
"AHEM!"
Turbo didn't even flinch. He craned his neck back, a rather bored look on his face as he looked both Calhoun and Taffyta up and down.
"You're LATE."
"Sorry, I didn't know that you had put everything on a SCHEDULE." Calhoun snorted.
"Hmph. What do ya take me for?" the former racer glared "Thum thort of thlob?"
"Look, I wanna spare the kid as much torture as possible, so get ta talkin' an' get it over with QUICK!" roared the woman, her nerves already on edge because of Turbo.
The racer turned as he sat up in bed, smiling at Taffyta evil "Thaffytha….its tho nice ta see ya! Its been THOOO long!"
Taffyta glared, biting down hard on her lollipop and breaking it with a sharp *SNAP!*.
"Its nice ta see ya too…" she finally said, her tone sweet but fake "Especially BEHIND BARS! I think it SUITS you!"
"Oh ho ho ho, getting' off ta a NICE thart, are we?" Turbo chortled, wagging his left eyebrow "Great! I was gettin' lonely down here with all these LOTHERS…."
"Okay, Calhoun. Ya can go now…." The racer growled. Calhoun nodded as she walked away though when she rounded the corner, she stopped. She had made a promise to the kid that she wasn't going to leave her alone and that was something she planned on keeping. Calhoun made sure her form was unnoticeable from Turbo but she remained close enough that she could hear, and record, every bit of dialog that came from his mouth.
Taffyta moved closer to the bars, her eyes narrowing as she looked at the sneering prisoner "Ya wanted to talk….so SPILL IT!"
"Instead of goin' inta tha doom an' gloom, why don't we talk about YA instead?" chuckled Turbo "How have tha rathes been goin'? Hope ya keep beatin' tha GLITCH. She can't run circles around ya-!"
Taffya growled; as she expected, Turbo had begun to insult Vanellope already, taking full of advantage of the racer's past in attempt to weaken her. The man let out a little laugh as he continued his little trip down memory lane.
"Ah, I remember those days! Back when things were THO much thimpler, tho much more FUN! It was just ya, me, tha rest of tha kiddies an' NO worries 'bout tha GLITCH. Heh, ta hear that word come from you mouth, knowin' that ya knew her place in the game, it always made me tho happy!"
"CUT THE CANDY CORN!" Taffyta snapped Taffyta "I know tha angle you're tryin' ta play here and it won't WORK!"
"Ya dooooo?" Turbo cooed evilly, his lips curling into a sneer "Darlin', I'm thust tellin' ya tha truth from tha past, that's all!"
The grey racer suddenly sprang up, moving so close to Taffyta that she nearly feel over, his glowing eyes going right into her very soul.
"You've been THLACKIN' Muttonfudge! I can tell! I can tell since tha GLITCH got back into power, ya an' the rest of those widdle kiddie racers have been pushin' down your talent ta let HEEEEER take the glory!" he turned though his eyes remained planted on Taffyta, glowing a sickly yellow color "Thell me, have people gotten on your case when YOU'VE come in first place? Have they insulted your skills when ya beat that GLITCH? Heh, I bet they do. That's why ya hold back; ya hold back because ya don't wanna see her or her lil fans cry because they got behind such an arrogant, INFERIOR racer!"
Taffyta took a step forward, though she did so with caution. She knew that Turbo was trying to get to her and she knew better than to follow his lies. Nonetheless, the way he spat out those words still hurt. It hurt because he was insulting her, it hurt because he was insulting Vanellope, it hurt because he was insulting ALL the racers in Sugar Rush.
And he seemed to relish in every moment of it, as if it were some sort of sweet dessert to him.
"I thould have known though…." The prisoner said sadly, shaking his head "The people of this arcade? They're so fake. They love to latch themselves onto someone who they THINK has all the glory while tossin' those who have the real talent aside!"
He looked at Taffyta, the girl glaring daggers at him.
"People like ya…They've become blind an' all because they felt pity for a poor widdle glitch. Someone who has no right ta even BE in YOUR game an' win YOUR races!"
The man was digging too deep now and seeing the look of anger forming on Taffyta face was exactly what he wanted. Calhoun peeked from behind the corner, clenching her teeth as she heard every word and saw the racer's reactions.
"C'mon kid, don't let him lead ya like this!"
At the moment, Taffyta wanted nothing more than to break through the bars and pound Turbo with a rather large candy mallet but if she did, she would only prevent herself and the others from learning the truth.
She had to remain calm and not just for herself, but for Vanellope and the others as well. She promised them that she would attempt to get as much info as she could out of the disgraced racer so she couldn't break down now. Not when things were just getting started. Her eyes met with Turbo once more, the man's gaze going into her like blades of glass but she had to be the stronger, she couldn't give in to his games. She took a deep breath and began to think of how things were now, how much better everyone was now that they were free.
Yes, there were no more lies, no more anger, no more bullying.
No more Turbo.
He was a little man; someone who tried to make himself out to be bigger and tougher than he really was. Taffyta wasn't going to allow herself to be controlled by him. Not anymore! A smile began to spread on her face as she brushed her bangs out of her eyes.
"You say such….LOVELY things, ya know that Turbz…" she began "You talk about how everyone here hates us now because of Vanellope's return to the throne, how we all have to hold ourselves back just to accommodate her. But lemme tell ya somethin' TURBO, you've missed a lot."
"Oh? An' what EXACTHLY did I miss?"
The girl let out a small chuckle "True, our reputation was soiled once the truth got out about our actions under YOUR rule but a small incident changed that. Those viruses ya brought in a few weeks back? They weren't the first ones to attack this arcade…."
Turbo arched an eyebrow; he had heard of the first attack. In fact, it was that attack that had inspired him to seek out Mal and Tor in the first place. Granted, had he known how things were to turn out in the end, he would have thought a bit longer on how to ensure HE would remain on top instead of ending up in jail.
"A virus came to our game. It came to our game with the intention of wipin' ALL of us out and for a while, it looked like that goal was going to be accomplished. I mean, it had kidnapped Vanellope and done a rather good job in convincing ALL of us that it was her for a while! But it didn't succeed….it didn't because in the end, Vanellope and I worked TOGETHER to beat that thing and save not only Sugar Rush but possibly the entire arcade!"
Taffyta stopped, a lump forming in her throat as she remembered those terrible moments "And in that moment, people got a taste of what we were really like, that we weren't just PAWNS loyal to your lies! No, after that, everyone finally saw that the images that YOU had made us out to be were lies."
"What are ya tryin' ta say kid?" Turbo mumbled, his temper rising a bit.
"What I'm sayin' is that your hold and influences on this arcade aren't as strong as ya think they are…Your influences on ME….they don't work anymore. You can rant and rave all you want about how Vanellope is a glitch and how her skills are nothing but I know their lies. They have ALWAYS been lies!"
The girl held back tears but it felt good to have her say with Turbo, enjoying the moments of cutting the man down several pegs.
"They're lies because even after your attempt to break us up, we've all gotten back together and even before that! Even before your take over? There was a small time….a small time when we all knew that our friendship was REAL and it wasn't tainted by YOU!"
The gray racer just looked at Taffyta, blinking twice before he started clapping much to the girl's confusion.
"Wow….just…WOW!" the man laughed "For a kid, ya really know your way around speeches!"
"I'm NOT just a kid…." Taffyta said in a cold tone.
"Riiiight, 'course you're not…" Turbo said, shaking his head "But I find it interestin' ya brought that up."
"Brought WHAT up?"
"That time before I came into your game? Heh, I'm ashamed to admit that I don't remember MUCH of how ya guys behaved with each other BEFORE I showed up, considerin' that I had OTHER things on my mind…" the man sneered "But I know that only thing ya wanna know is how I did it, right?"
"Why else would I come here?!" yelled Taffyta.
"It pains ya doesn't it? Not knowin' that truth?" Turbo began "Ya act so brave now but I can thell that it HURTS. It hurts knowin' that someone as thimple as ME could come into your game an' take it over for FIFTEEN YEARS. It hurts knowing that NONE of those memories of what ya did to tha GLITCH, I mean, VANELLOPE, will NEVER go away."
Taffyta balled her little fist as she continued to give Turbo a cold glare "So, are you gonna start talkin', or are ya just gonna continue to dance around the subject? I mean, its up to you if you're too SCARED to tell the truth."
The man then shut his eyes, walking back to his cot before he leaned on it.
"Scared….." he sighed "Yeah, I think that's a good way of puttin' it."
Taffyta twitched a bit, gripping the bars to the man's prison "Scared? What are ya talkin' about?"
Turbo tilted his head a bit, running his fingers through his hair "Thaffyta, there is no guarantee that a game could work in the mornin'….it might be fine one day an' BOOM! Gone tha next. Back then….I was scared."
"Of WHAT, exactly?"
"Heh, bein' forgotten I guess…." Turbo snickered though Taffyta could hear the tone in his voice breaking a bit, almost as if the man was having trouble gathering his words "I know….I know what I did was wrong an' I wouldn't be surprised if NO ONE forgave me for my actions but…."
"But what?"
Silence.
For a few moments, the man said nothing, gripping the blankets on his cot tightly in his hands.
"Let's say my determination to take over Sugar Rush was driven by blind fear. A blind fear that I would be forgotten, that I would NEVER be able to race again….and by…."
"None of that excuses what ya did to us!" Taffyta bellowed, her face turning red in anger "You took over our home, tried to DELETE my friend and you…you used my mind to turn against her! You had us under your control!"
"AND DON'T YA THINK I FEEL BAD ABOUT THAT?!" the man roared, turning back towards the racer. Taffyta jumped back a bit, shocked that Turbo would explode on her in such a way. The man glared at the girl, his yellow eyes beaming.
"I know what everyone thinks! Do ya think I'm THAT THUPID?! I hear the words all tha time! I only took control of the game because of greed! Because of my ego! M-Maybe….maybe that was it at first but-!"
"But?"
"But once I was in, once I felt that you guys were my family….I…I just couldn't let go."
Family?
Taffyta's eyes widened, a shiver going down her spine; she had never thought of it that way but as the memories came flooding back, perhaps…perhaps there was something to Turbo's behavior that had never seen before.
"Thell me, Thaffy. Durin' my rule, did I ever mistreat you? Did I?"
Taffyta shook her head about wildly, "N-No! You can't use that on me! You might have acted sweet to us, but it was just to blanket the truth!"
"Was it now, dear?"
"What about Vanellope! You-!"
"I know…." Turbo looked down at his feet "I know what I did to Vanellope was wrong, but I was scared! I knew that if she learned tha truth, if ANY of ya learned tha truth, you'd never understand!"
"We'd never understand WHAT?!"
"Despite what happened, ya guys will NEVER understand what it feels like to have your home unplugged an' taken away! If that truth got out, your PRINCESS would have had me thrown out! She would NEVER listen because she would never understand! She never COULD!"
"You're expectin' me ta believe that Vanellope, a girl who lived fifteen years of her life in a mountain, wouldn't understand what it was like being without a home?!" the girl growled "What kinda of a fool do ya take me as?!"
Turbo looked up, a look of anger on his face "Ya can try ta compare us all ya want but no! She wouldn't understand an' ya know why?! At tha end of the day, she gets to live the high life in her widdle palace, people waitin' on her hand an' foot! The arcade treats her like a GODDESS that can never do wrong an' who is always right! She can go home knowin' that a kid will play her game an' she will be loved above all! She has friends, she has a family! But me….even if things turned out differently, I would have had NONE of that."
The glowing in Turbo's eyes began to fade, as if all the energy were being sapped from the man.
"The twins? They left back before you were even PROGRAMMED, an' tha same goes for everyone else in my game. I was tha only one left…an' no one CARED."
Taffyta hunched her shoulders as she continued to listen; there was just something to Turbo's story that didn't sit right with her but at the same time, the way he was acting…this was so unlike him. Before, it was rather clear that the man was trying to push every button Taffyta had but now it was as if he were DESPERATE for anyone to hear him out.
Could it be that Turbo was telling the truth?
Even so, that still didn't make the man innocent in the racer's mind but his words still bothered her.
What if things HAD turned out differently? Could the entire take over had been prevented?
Maybe if someone had noticed him, maybe if SUGAR RUSH had noticed him.
No, this didn't make sense! Turbo's want for attention didn't give him the right to ruin so many people's lives and yet there he was, trying to convince the girl otherwise.
"Ya wanna know why I asked ya ta come?" the man said "Because I knew that of all tha racers….you'd be the most willin' ta listen."
"R-right…" Taffyta mumbled, folding her arms against her chest.
"I'm tellin' that truth…The other racers? They're all good kids but ya…ya reminded me of myself."
That was something that Taffyta didn't want to or even NEED to hear. She was just like Turbo?
That meant that she was a terrible person….and she already knew how it felt to be accused of that.
"Ya remind me of myself because ya would do anythin', even when things were put against ya."
"Stop it…."
"Ya would thand UP against someone who was tryin' ta put ya down."
"I SAID stop it."
"Ya would thand up against a TYRANT who was usin' a cover ta get their own gain!"
"SHUT UP!"
"YA WOULD DO ANYTHIN' TO ENSURE THAT PEOPLE WERE HAPPY, EVEN IF SOMEONE ELSE WAS LYING!"
"TURBO, SHUT UP!"
Taffyta voice rang throughout the prison, the girl huffing in anger as she glared at Turbo. Down the hall, Calhoun could not believe what she had been listening to. Turbo was trying his all to play the girl like a fiddle and somehow, Taffyta remained strong.
But it was becoming apparent that things were starting to break. Taffyta just couldn't handle some of the things that Turbo was telling her.
"Ya thay ya know Vanellope well. Ya thay that before I took over, you guys were an' had always been friends…."
Taffyta cleared her throat, pushing the brim of her cap up "YES. Yes we were…."
"That's not what was happenin'…." The man said as he sat on his cot, his head hanging "I know things Thaffyta. I know things that would hurt the very core of your code if I told ya. Things that Vanellope would do anything ta shut me up for sayin'…."
"I-I told you before! It doesn't matter how much ya try ta spin that truth, Vanellope has an' always was a character in our game an' never a glitch!"
"No…no she wasn't a glitch…." Turbo whispered "She was much more dangerous."
Turbo raised his head, a pained look in his eyes as he gazed at Taffyta.
"I know two wrongs don't make a right. I had no right takin' over Sugar Rush for so long but once I realized what I was doin' I tried ta make it up by bein' a monarch that Vanellope WASN'T. I wanted ta be someone who ruled an' loved you guys for who ya were, NOT just to play face."
Taffyta shook a bit "W-what are ya-?"
"After bein' in Sugar Rush for so long, I HAD to continue on with the façade but not for ME…" the former racer said in a grim voice "It was because I learned that ya guys were livin' a lie an' it hurt me to know the truth AN' ta keep it from ya."
"A lie?" Taffyta asked, leaning closer to the bars "W-what kind of lie?"