Chapter 15
"You…"
My eyes narrow in fury at the sight of the Glitch, that mutinous mistake who went and wrecked everything- even Ralph. But that wasn't enough- no, she just couldn't stop until she'd laid waste to everything and everyone I hold dear. And now, here in the ruins of my old home, besieged by her hand, it seems she has finally succeeded.
How long has she been here? Has she been following me, just as before, bent on manipulating me? Am I nothing but a pawn in her mini-game, being kept alive at the expense of all else that I care about? And now with my sister dead in my arms, has she come to admire her handiwork- the deaths of those many who don't matter?
Well, it matters to me- and I will stop at nothing to let her know it.
"YOU!"
I fling the word in her direction with all the power my lungs can muster, and just like that, I have her attention. As she realizes the word is directed to her, she begins to back away from the edge of the valley, and the surprised look on her face is replaced with a look of fear- total fear.
And she has every reason to be afraid. Because she has just robbed me of the one remaining thing I care about. Because she knows I will no longer be a player in her cruel game. And because I'm not about to let the death of my sister go unpunished.
Seized by the mightiest, most overwhelming rage I've ever known, I sink to my knees, thrust my fists to the sky and scream louder than I ever have in my life, and my voice resonates across the barren landscape of Sugar Rush.
At the sound of my scream of fury, the Glitch begins to edge cautiously away from the top of the hill, and once I take a tentative step in her direction, she breaks into a run.
"Don't even think about it, kid…" warns Calhoun.
I whip around to face her, giving her one last glare of resentment, before I deliberately throw my weapon to the ground, and take off running in pursuit of the Glitch.
I can hear Calhoun's threats of "Return to formation now, rookie! That's an order!" over my shoulder, but I don't care. That Glitch has just destroyed the one thing that mattered most to me- and the only thing that matters now is to show her what happens when you tangle with Jubileena Bing-Bing, the most dangerous girl in the arcade.
…
A blast of cool air sweeps across my face as I charge blindly through my ruined game, and the cloud of dust that smacks me next sets my eyes and throat on fire. The pain is excruciating, but I keep running through the whirling sea of debris until my dust-filled lungs force me to a stop.
That Glitch had to have come this way, I think. I look around for her, but the dust storm before me makes it impossible to see anything on the ground. But when I glance up at the sky and the top of Sugar Rush's most prominent landmark comes into view, I instantly realize what her destination must be, and I sprint as fast as I can in the direction of Diet Cola Mountain.
I feel as if I'm drawing ever closer, but I have absolutely no idea… this dust storm is completely obscuring my view of anything but the top of the mountain. Then, just as soon as it came, the cloud of debris dissipates, revealing the rest of the mountain- and a flash of blue near its base.
Target sighted.
With all the speed I can muster, I sprint after wretched little Vanellope, now glitching uncontrollably out of fear. She knows I'm on to her… she probably expects she'll be safe once she reaches the safety of her home inside the mountain. But the last thing she expected for sure was for me to lunge at her moments before she could pass through the secret opening.
"YAAAAAAAH!"
I seize her by the leg, but she glitches right out of my grasp and resumes her course for home.
"COME BACK HERE, YOU-" I scream at her, lunging for her again, throwing her whole body to the ground this time. I try to hold her arms back, but she punches me in the face as she rolls out of my reach, attempting to pick herself back up.
"JUBI?! ARE YOU OUTTA YER MI-" she starts to scream before I throw myself at her again, landing a blow to her face as I grab her by the arm again.
"SHUT UP!" I yell at her, throwing her another punch. "YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID! YOU KILLED MY SISTER!"
I ready for another blow to her face, but she suddenly wrenches her arm free of my grasp and shoves me to the ground.
"Yer crazy!" she snarls. "I dunno what yer talking about! I never killed-"
"YES… YOU… DID!" I cut her off with a flurry of punches and throw her to the ground again, crushing her legs under my weight and seizing her left arm.
The Glitch begins breathing heavily as she realizes the position I've left her in. I have her this time, and she knows it.
"Jubi, what're you doing?! Lemme go! I didn't do anything! I never killed anybody, I swear!" she shouts desperately at my face.
"YOU LIAR!" I scream as I grab hold of a clump of her jet-black hair and tear it out with one swift yank. As she lets out of a cry of intense pain, I stare down her face, her eyes welling up with tears, and ready for another attack.
"Jubi, s-stop it, I didn't d-do anything! Stop it! P-please!" she sobs, holding her free arm to her face as if to block my blows.
Holding her hand out in front of her was a big mistake. With a shriek of rage, I seize her hand and sink my teeth into her arm, not stopping until I detect the taste of her blood. Her entire body begins to shake as she starts screaming in pain again. I can feel her legs wriggling under mine as I release her arm, which falls limply to her side.
"Jubi… please…" she whimpers.
I never want to hear another word from this stupid, selfish Glitch ever again- I throw her a punch to the mouth, and she falls silent. A trail of blood oozes from her open mouth, only to join the flow of tears streaming from her eyes.
The sight is sickening, but it doesn't stop me. "YOU KILLED HER!" I scream as I throw another punch to her face, leaving behind a black eye.
"YOU… KILLED… MY… SISTER!" I yell again, punctuating every word with a blow. "You… You…" I struggle to say the word, remembering how I felt after I had said it last time, how the sound of it had wounded Vanellope. But that was a different time, when I'd had different views of her- before she took every last thing that mattered away from me.
At last, I bring myself to say it. "YOU GLITCH!" I shriek at her before slamming my fist into her stomach, knocking any breath she might have had out of her.
I raise my hand to throw another punch, but suddenly the tables turn as a large man rolls me onto my stomach and comes down hard, knocking the wind out of me.
"Lieutenant detained," I hear Kohut's voice say as he hoists me up by the arms. "You may proceed with the charges, Sergeant."
I gulp as Kohut wheels me around to face an enraged Calhoun, who glances between me and the bloody face of the Glitch, who begins to pick herself up off the ground weakly.
"Are you trying to get court-martialed, rookie?!" she shrieks, her eyes narrowed. "I don't have a clue what I was thinking, letting a 12-year-old lead us into this rat hole… and now this… do you have any idea what you've just done?!"
"NO!" I snarl at her. "And I don't care! She killed my sister, and if you think I'm gonna let her get away with it, then you're-"
"You really think Vanellope Von Schweetz killed your sister?!" Calhoun cuts me off.
I freeze, dumbstruck at the sound of Vanellope's name coming from Calhoun's mouth. This couldn't be happening… How could Calhoun, the very leader of the resistance movement, possibly be in league with that traitor Vanellope?
"No… it can't be true… She started the invasion!… How? How could you…"
"Started the invasion?!" This gets a laugh out of Calhoun. "Vanellope was the only one in Sugar Rush that stayed to help fight it! And you actually think she caused all this?"
"Listen to her, Jubes," Vanellope moans desperately, standing up with great effort. "She's telling the truth!"
"No… No she's not!" I scream. "She's a liar! You're ALL liars! ALL OF YOU!" I tug furiously at Kohut, but can't break the corporal's firm grip on my arms.
Calhoun sighs. "Well, it looks like this show's over. Kohut, take Carrot Top here back to Hero's Duty. She's in for a long stay in the detention cell at the rate she's going…"
But just as Kohut begins to drag me away, I glance at Vanellope's face, and an immense rage consumes me… rage more powerful than anything I've ever known, rage far beyond my control. It was a completely new feeling, one that had been foreign to me for fifteen long years.
Hatred.
In one single motion, I slip out of Kohut's grasp and charge at the Glitch with blinding speed, as a faint red glow surrounds me. "I HATE YOU!" I scream the moment my fist collides with her face and sends her crashing to the ground.
The Hero's Duty soldiers gasp as I come to a stop, looking over Vanellope. Even Calhoun looks completely mortified. What have I just done?!
"Jubi…" Vanellope whispers. "Your code… it's broken…"
I look down at my hands, and it's all I can do not to faint at the sight of them flickering with a flash of red. Then it hits me… she's entirely right. I have done the unthinkable… I have corrupted my own code.
Love was the only thing keeping sweet little Jubileena teetering on the brink of stability. It was the one thing that mattered to me; the last piece of my code I've been able to hold on to. And now, there is no longer any love inside of Jubileena Bing-Bing, only hate- pure, unbridled hate. With that last chunk of code gone, the last domino falls, and my sweet candy shell comes apart at last, revealing the battered, broken remains within…
I have become a Glitch.