Chapter Ten -Truth

"What did ya wanna see us for, Taff?" asked Rancis as he made his way towards the girl.

"Yeah, ya called us out of the blue like tha game had caught on fire or somethin'!" panted Swizz, having run all the way from his house.

Taffyta didn't say a word. She just glared at her friends as they gathered around her. This was all so similar to when she had called them to her only days before but this time, things were much more serious.

"Guys….we need to talk about Vanellope."

"Um, sure. But what else can ya say about her that we don't already know?" asked Snowanna.

Taffyta removed her cap, a serious look about her "Ya know all that stuff I told ya guys before? About how I thought I might have been wrong with my first feelings? That I stalled and wanted to just give her another chance?"

"Y-Yes, we remember that.." Adorabeezle said in a meek tone.

"Forget everything I said about givin' her a second chance! She DESERVES no more chances!" the strawberry race shouted, rage in her eyes.

"Whoa! Why the sudden change?"

"Because I know the true intentions of that GLITCH." The racer growled, her hands balled into fist "She was usin' us all but most of all, she was plannin' on icin' me first!"

Crumbellina gasped in shock "So she DID cause your crash?! That's AWFUL!"

"Awful? AWFUL doesn't even begin to cover it!" the racer then turned, eyeing each of her friends "If she hadn't gotten close to me, it could have been ANY of ya guys an' YOU could have ended up in a wreck! Well, NO MORE!"

"In that case, what do ya want us ta do?" asked Candlehead, scratching her head.

"IF we even SEE her come near us, I want ya guys to remind her WHO the real racers are an' who is just a GLITCH." Taffyta hissed "I don't care about her stupid lil pitty party she tries to pull on us. Tha moment she tries to take US out just to fulfill her stupid, selfish goals is the moment she goes too far!"

The others looked at each other, completely shocked that Taffyta would suggest such tactics against the girl.

"B-but what about King Candy? What will he say if he sees us doin' that?"

"I"ve had a talk with the King…an' from what he told me, he said to protect ourselves with any means necessary! He's SICK of the GLITCH and how's she's been treatin' us!"

The strawberry race could tell that the others were a little unsure on whether or not to follow her but as she looked down at the others, Taffyta couldn't help hurt but worry. What if something DID happen to them? She just couldn't allow it!

"Look guys, I know it sounds TOUGH but that's how ya hafta act when someone like Vanellope plays ya like she did ta ME! She took stuff from us ALL an' are we just gonna let that happen?!"

"No!" the others cried, angry looks coming on their faces.

"Are we gonna let some GLITCH get her way, after the rest of us have had to work HARD to get where we are?!"

"NO!"

"ARE WE GONNA LET VANELLOPE DESTROY OUR GAME AN' USE US AGAIN?!"

"NO!"

At that moment, everything had been set into stone.

At that moment, Vanellope had lost any and all connection she had with her former friends.

And a certain candy monarch couldn't have had it any other way.

He looked from his window as his 'children' began to start their hate for the child, their words of vitrol and anger playing out to him like music.

"Wonderful…." The man said, chuckling to himself "An' I didn't even hafta lift a FINGER!"

"Turbo?" asked Taffyta "Lemme ask ya a question?"

"Yes?"

"Why did ya wanna come back ta Sugar Rush?" the girl asked, leading the man through the game in the dark of the night.

"Call it nostalgia…" the man chuckled "But I have other reason as to why I wanted to come back here…."

"Oh? And what would those be?" asked the girl, giving Turbo an interested look.

"I just wanted to get one last look at Vanellope before I said good bye!"

"Good bye!" the racer said in shock, turning towards the man "Y-you mean you're LEAVING?!"

Turbo gave the girl a soft smile "S-sorry kid but….it just has to be that way!"

"Turbo, NO!" Taffyta cried "Ya just got outta prison, I managed to get you back into the game an'-! Urgh, NO! I can't let ya leave!"

"Kid, the fact that I BROKE OUTTA jail is the reason SOMEONE has ta leave!" Turbo said, pushing Taffyta away gently "I mean, I'm surprised the Hero's Duty flunkies aren't even lookin' for me yet! It's dangerous to be out right now!"

"Look! You can hide in my place! Or…or maybe we can build ya another cottage in the far woods! I mean, it's not THAT difficult to program!"

Again, Turbo smiled at the girl, seemingly touched by her kindness towards him.

"Kid, if there's one thing that I've always loved about ya, its tha fa-th ya always stood by me, even when things looked BLEAK."

"Why wouldn't I?" Taffyta grinned "You ARE the rightful ruler of this game! Not that GLITCH!"

The former racer suddenly scooped Taffyta into a hug, holding her so tight that he lifted her off the ground.

"W-why am I always given such kind people?" the man said in a whisper "Maybe I am lucky…"

Taffyta hugged the man back, a huge smile forming on her face "No, I'm the lucky one!"

Turbo sighed, gripping the girl harder in his clutches.

"Yes…so lucky. So, SO lucky. But darlin'?"

"Yes, sir?" the girl asked, pulling away from the hug to look Turbo eye to eye.

"I hate ta inform ya, but your luck is about ta change…"

And with that, Turbo HURLED Taffyta into a peppermint tree, the girl crying out in horrid pain once she hit the hard surface, sliding down to the ground. She sat dazed on the dirt for a moment or two but she could clearly see Turbo marching up to her, an evil sneer on his face and his eyes glowing yellow.

That horrid, HORRID glow.

Taffyta let out a few whimpers as she scooted back, horrified at what she was looking at "T-Turbo! W-what-?!"

"Aw, cut the corn KID!" the racer snarled as he glared down at the girl "I'm SICK of your snifflin'!"

What was happening? Only moments before, things were going so well between both racers but now it seemed that everything had turned and they had turned for the worst! Taffyta staggered to her feet, an angry look coming about her face.

"I-I was just tryin' ta be nice, that's all! Ya didn't hafata throw me like-!"

SLAP!

Turbo's hand met with Taffyta's cheek, the force so powerful that the girl once again found herself falling to the ground, the slap still stinging.

"Stupid brat…" the man chuckled "I'm glad that ya retained SOME brown nosin' of me in that thick skull of yours, otherwise I would have NEVER been able to get out!"

Tears were rolling down Taffyta's cheeks, the girl's mascara bleeding horribly "W-what?! But I thought-!"

"Ya thought WHAT?" the man roared, picking the girl up by her neck "Ya really thought that I would open up ta ya brats?! PAH-LEEEEZE! The moment I confess anythin' is the moment I give up racin' COMPLETELY!"

The look of Taffyta's face was unlike that of a person who had their heart ripped away from her. The news was just too much! "S-So ya did lie!"

"An' you're shocked?" Turbo laughed smugly, rolling his eyes "Seriously, ya guys are WAAAY too forgivin'!"

"B-But what about keepin' us safe?! What about ME?! What about-?!"

"Yeah, 'bout that!" Turbo said, sitting Taffyta down roughly on a cookie log, joining her a second later "Ya see kid, I was tryin' ta keep somethin' safe in this stupid game while I was in charge…."

Turbo shoved his face closer to Taffyta's, the girl's eyes shrinking down to pinpoints.

"ME!" with another laugh, Turbo tossed Taffyta to the ground, his boot planted on her back "See, I KNEW if I didn't lock up your pathetic minds, you would come runnin' ta me ta kick my butt the moment I made your bratty friend a glitch! It SUCKED that pullin' the wires didn't accomplish what I really wanted, but HEY! Ya take what ya can get!"

"Y-ya mean ta tell me ya DID plan on deletin' her!"

"No DUH!" Turbo mocked "Seriously, ya think I would have beaten tha SNOT outta people for that stupid code for nothin'? But oh! It didn't stop there! I KNEW that ya wimps would be sympathetic to Vanellope so I had ta find a way ta turn ya AGAINST each other!"

Turbo cracked his neck as he looked back down at Taffya, his foot pressing into her as if she were some sort of bug "A lie here, a lie there. All done ta make sure King Candy would REIGN SUPREME!"

Taffyta gritted her teeth painfully, trying to roll over "F-figures ya had somethin' ta do with that crash!"

"Ah-HUH!" the man laughed "All done by ME, all FOR me! I mean, it was SO MUCH FUN watchin' ya crash so long ago! An' plantin' the eveidence on Vanellope? Heh, it's so wonderful how much a few stray pieces of candy an' dressin' up as tha lil creep can do!"

"I-I wondered why Vanellope looked a t-tad too tall in that video!" The girl growled, pushing back Turbo "BUT WHY?! WHY US?! There were TONS of games ya could have gone too! Why US?!"

"Why? Because ya were EASY." Turbo frowned "Because ya guys are a buncha lil BRATS who don't DESERVE all this love an' recognition! You're just like Road Blasters! A'buncha UPSTARTS who deserved gettin' unplugged! It's just a shame that ya guys didn't fall as hard as they did!"

By now, tears were STREAMING down Taffyta's face; from the looks of it, the girl was beside herself in pain and grief. Once again, it appeared that she had been lied to and she had once again let Turbo lead her down the path of destruction and what made it even worse was how EASY it was for him to do it.

All he had to do was lay on a few pity stories, a few lies, a few puppy dog eyes and the girl fell for it.

But worst of all was the simple fact that she had released him back into Sugar Rush and if he got away….

Oh programmers, who KNEW what he could do!

Turbo raised his foot off the girl, allowing her to sit up "If anything, I have ta thank ya, sweetie."

The girl coughed, trying to clear her throat "A-an' why is that?!"

"Had it not been for your listenin' ear, I never would have gotten this far an' as I said, someone has ta leave…."

The man bent down again, taking Taffyta by her collar and lifting her off the ground.

"BUT IT AIN'T ME!"

And with those final words, Turbo HURLED Taffya into a taffy pool, the girl crying out in horror as she flailed about, sinking into the muck.

"H-HELP ME! SOMEONE! PLEASE!"

"Aw, wish I could do so sweetie!" the man cackled "But I have a date with a GLITCH!"