Chapter 8- Seconds on the Clock
Ralph stood before the Gritz Gang, the large group of fighters outnumbering the wrecker a dozen to one and growing!
But that didn't mean a thing to Ralph.
They had come to HIS game, THEY had thrown the first punch, THEY were about to learn a lesson in Wreck-Osity 101!
Their professor? Mr. Wreck-it- Ralph!
"I only have one question, how the heck did you get past Surge!?" Ralph growled.
Gritz let out a little laugh as he rolled his head, "It doesn't take too much to short out a stuffed shirt like him!" the man replied, showing Ralph a rather large wrench "Just shove something like this into the main breaker and POW! He's out for a while!"
Ralph jumped forward and grabbed Gritz by the collar "WHY YOU-!"
"What's goin' on here!" shouted Calhoun, running out of the main doors of the apartment with Felix following close behind.
"Oh, it's Ms. Blondie! Nice to see you join us!" Gritz said in a taunting manner, waving his hand as if nothing were happening.
"Gritz!" the sergeant growled "I should have known a big galumph like you would take some chances on suspension!"
"Hey, give me some credit!" the man laughed "I just missed you guys SOOOOO much, I HAD ta come for a visit!"
Calhoun marched up to the man, glaring at him with daggers "You've already crossed the line tonight. Do ya really wanna risk doin' it again?!"
"Baby, if that's an invite for a fight, I'm all up for it!" the man said, patting Calhoun on the head as if she were some child. The woman didn't take too kindly to the 'compliment' and in a blink of an eye, she grabbed the man by his arm and hurled him into a nearby bush, the others gasping in shock.
"Wanna restate that?!" Calhoun sneered, cracking her knuckles.
Gritz slowly rose from the bush but instead of readying himself for a fight, the man just sat there, looking a bit too calm for Calhoun's liking.
"Spicy….just the way I like 'em!"
Gritz then snapped his finger and before anyone else could move, his entire gang surrounded the lot of characters, preventing any of them from escaping.
"I was fair in lettin' you have the first swing honey…." Gritz said, walking up to Calhoun with his hands in his pockets "But this time, IT'S MY TURN!"
The man then took a swing at Calhoun, hitting her in the jaw and knocking her off her feet.
"HONEY!" Felix shouted but before he could move, another gang member grabbed him and tossed him right into the duck pond.
"LAY A HAND ON ANYONE ELSE AN' YOU'RE DEAD!" bellowed Ralph, lifting up the crony and tossing him right into the brick pile.
And as the punches flew, an all-out brawl began on the front lawn of Niceland. Granted, it was more of a battle between Gritz, his men, and the trio of Ralph, Felix, and Calhoun with the others ensnared into the mess. With not a bit of strength to aid them, the others didn't stand a chance against the Gritz gang.
What was the other option?
Running of course!
"EVERYONE! OOFF!" GET TO SAFETY!" Calhoun yelled as she was being pulled back into a fight.
"THAT'S EASY FOR YOU TO SAY!" screamed Pearl "YOU CAN ACTUALLY RUN WITH YOUR LEGS!"
The smaller characters tried their best to hide and flee but it seemed wherever they went, another gang member was there waiting for them and they just couldn't miss the opportunity to toss a Nicelander or two.
"Just like tossing bean-bags!" cackled one of the gang members, taking two Nicelanders into his huge hands before tossing them off somewhere.
All this fun with the helpless Nicelanders was simply delicious for the gang but there was one Nicelander in particular that was not in the fight.
GENE.
Gene remained in his room, huddled on the floor with a comforter wrapped around him. The terrified screams and large explosions that rocked the game were more than enough to convince him to stay put but the more he heard the more pressure he began to feel.
Those were HIS people out there suffering and once again, he was hiding from the fight.
He WANTED to go out there and fight but he then remembered the man who was aiming for was the SAME man who had hours before clocked him into a wall and shoved him into a trash bin.
If he didn't stand a chance then, what chance did he have NOW?!
"STOPSTOPSTOPSTOPSTOPSTOP!" Gene mumbled to himself, wanting nothing more than to find a space to crawl into and disappear forever.
Back on the lawn, Ralph was trying his best to hold off the attacks but he was quickly realizing that juggling so many fighters at once was not the best for him. Calhoun and Felix weren't doing that well either. Even though she was a combat fighter, Calhoun was finding it difficult to take on a bunch of adrenalin driven meat-tanks that didn't seem to have an off switch.
And Felix?
By now, Felix was hanging by his tool belt on a tree, another member taunt him by taking his hat away from him.
"OOOooooOOOOoooo! I'm Fix-it-Felix! I have a big nose an' a weird accent! HOWDY YA'LL!"
"THAT'S TEXAN! I'M OBVIOUSLY FROM THA SOUTH!" Felix shouted, his arms thrashing about in rage to hit the bully, missing every time.
"URGH, these guys keep crawling out of the woodwork like ANTS!" the wrecker growled, slamming his head into another fighter, knocking him out.
"Oh, is that so?" cackled Gritz, pulling Ralph over to the side "Then why don't WE dance, Big Red?"
Ralph scowled, throwing a huge first at Gritz and landing a blow. The man recovered quickly but remained on the ground, swinging his long legs around and knee-capping Ralph, sending him falling into the grass like a huge tree
"AAAAH! You guys provide me with such WONDERFUL exercise!" the brawler laughed, getting back on his feet.
Ralph tried to pick himself up but Gritz grabbed him by his overall straps, lifting him up and hurling through the air right through one of the apartments in East Niceland. As the dust cleared, everyone could see Ralph sitting in a pile of broken bricks, a hand to his head as he glared at the man who stood in front of him.
"Okay. That's it! I'M DONE PLAYIN' NICE WITH YOU!"
The two clashed once again, causing even more destruction with each pounding that they took. Ralph finally managed to get the fighter in a choke-hold, forcing all his weight onto him.
"C-Come on man! You know you're not getting' anywhere with this! JUST STOP!"
"We'll stop!" Gritz said, hurling a brick right through one of the apartment windows "ONCE WE HAVE THAT TUBBY MAYOR OF YOURS!"
It was if Gene heard Gritz all the way from the yard; he sat up as if someone had stuck a pin in his bottom, his eyes wide and full of fear.
"W-what am I doing?!" the man said to himself "I-I've got to get out there and stop all of this!"
Gene rushed out of his apartment, heading right for the stairs only but in his rush, he didn't notice Mary standing by the hall window. The man crashed right into the woman, knocking her down.
"OOF!"
"Oh goodn- MARY!" Gene cried, getting to his feet and helping the woman up "Oh, this is the LAST thing I need!"
"Gene, Gene! I'm fine!" the woman said, brushing off her skirt "But I can't say the same for everyone else!"
"W-what?! What do you-?!"
Gene then turned his head towards the window, a horrific sight meeting his eye.
"SWEET GHOST OF MIYAMOTO!" the man screamed in horror, his hands pressed on his face.
Niceland was being turned into a literal WAR-ZONE. Gritz and his gang were making it their mission to destroy everything in sight and torment anyone who came in their way and it didn't matter WHO it was.
A Nicelander?
They got a good kick in the face and was sent flying off somewhere in the distance!
Q-Bert and one of his friends?
They got tossed about like they were filled with helium!
"*(#$R*&*%&*%%^!" chattered the little orange character as he was plucked from the groun and held aloft in the air by one of the gang members.
"SHUT UP! YOU TALK FUNNY!" the brute shouted as he then drop-kicked the poor creature into the rose bushes.
Watching from within the apartment, Gene was beside himself in panic.
"WHAT DO I DO, WHAT DO I DO, WHAT DO I DO?!" the man said to himself, sinking on the ground, the echoes of the screams and shouts working his way deep into his very soul.
He couldn't deny it; he was TERRIFIED but he knew he had to do SOMETHING! His home was being attacked and even the toughest of fighters were no match for the onslaught!
"O-Okay!" said Mary, wringing her hands in nervousness "I could try to reach some other games to help but I'm not-!"
The woman then turned just in time to see Gene collapse onto the ground, the Nicelander ducking below the window, holding himself in a small ball and rocking on his bottom.
"It's just a dream…it's just a dreaaaam…it's just a DREAAAAAAAAM!"
Mary fell to her knees and grabbed Gene by his shoulders, shaking him.
"Gene? GENE?! GENE, LISTEN TO ME!"
The portly mayor shut his eyes and clenched his teeth, trying in vain to convince himself that he would wake up in his bed, everything back to normal but it was obvious that he was lying to himself.
What was happening before him was REAL and even worse?
He knew that he was once again contributing nothing to help.
"Come on Gene! SNAP OUT OF IT!" Mary said, pulling hard on the man's cheeks.
"GYWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
With a large CRASH, Don SAILED through the window and crashed headfirst into the wall in front of Gene. The Nicelander fell stone-cold in front of the other two before regenerating a second later, lying on his side and twitching horribly.
"DON! DONALD! SPEAK TO ME!" Mary said, crawling over to her neighbor.
"Why? AH JUST WANNA KNOW, WHY?!" the sailor shouted, dropping his posh accent for his more crass one.
That was it! That was all Gene needed to see to convince him to get off his butt and do something!
"NO MORE!"
Mary watched as Gene made his way to the stairs, still unsure herself on whether or not she should follow him.
"Oh, PLEASE don't do anything STUPID!"
Scowling angrily, Gene made his way back to the stairs and began the trek to the atrium of the apartments. Things would have gone much more smoothly had one of the gang members NOT tossed a bomb near the side of the apartment, the device going off just as Gene was about to take a step from the fifth floor.
BOOOOOOOOOOOM!
"NYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"
And then Gene ROLLED the rest of the way down.
The mayor hit the side of the door with a painful THUD, picking himself up once the pain in his body faded. Staggering to the front door, the little man was finally able to take in the full destruction of his home.
"Oh Gene….what have you UNLEASHED?!"
"BACK! BACK YOU BUTT-UGLY NEANDERTHAL!" Nel shouted, trying her best to push back one of the brutes with a yard stick.
"Aw, the fluffy one thinks she can FIGHT!" the man said, grabbing Nel by her hair and holding her up, the woman crying out.
"NEL!" Norwood yelled angrily, running as fast as his tiny legs could carry him "YOU LET HER DOWN! YA HEAR?!"
Sadly, Norwood's heroics were only met with laughter by the gang member, the man grabbing Norwood by the back of his sweater-vest and squishing him against Nel.
"Aw, did I hurt your girlfriend?" the member said with a cheeky grin.
"EXCUSE ME?!" shouted Nel angrily "WHAT DO YOU MEAN GIRL-UURRRRF!"
The large man then shoved the two Nicelanders through the opening of a tire before chucking them away as if they were nothing.
Inside the atrium, Gene watched as the tire went sailing through the air.
Right where he was standing.
"Oh please, don't land her-!"
The two Nicelanders landed with a large crash right next to Gene, the tire rolling into the atrium and only coming to a stop once it hit the couch. The mayor scrawled to his feet though he wasn't sure HOW to pull his friends out of the tire.
"GAH! Are you two alright?!"
Nel gave Gene a sarcastic look, the woman thankful that of the two she had landed upright "We're GREAT Gene! This is just somethin' Nory an' I like to do!"
"I can't feel my body…."
"Okay, that's it! No more!" Gene said, standing up and marching out the door.
"WAIT! GENE! DON'T LEAVE US!" Nel screamed as she kicked her tiny legs "I'M NOT SURE HOW I FEEL BEING STUCK IN THIS POSITION!"
"Nel! Your foot is on my butt!" Norwood sobbed, his cheeks burning bright.
"SHUT UP NORWOOD!" the woman yelled in anger, kicking the Nicelander in his bottom.
Gene pushed open the doors and stood at the foot of the entrance, cupping his hands over his mouth.
"Everyone!"
No response. Everyone was still running around like their heads were cut off.
"EVERYONE STOP!" the man shouted, his voice a little louder.
Still no answer. Gene turned just in time to see poor Tony being strung up by his shoes on the tram roof.
"BUT JUST SHINED THEM!" the Nicelander cried, flailing his arms.
Obviously, Gene needed to turn up the volume once more. The little man took a deep breath, his chest puffing out and…
"EVERYBODY! SHUT UUUUUUUUP!"
That got everyone's attention!
All eyes then focused on Gene, the little man twiddling his fingers nervously once he realized he still didn't know what exactly to say to the fighting crowd.
"Er, someone said they wanted to see me?"
Gritz grinned evilly, dropping Ralph to the ground as he walked over to the mayor.
"Bought time Tubby came out…."
Gritz was ready to pound Gene into the ground but once he got a good look at the little man, he stopped in his tracks, his eyes wife.
"H-Hey! WHAT THE-?!"
"What? What is it THIS time?!" Gene asked, a little frantic but also a bit annoyed.
"I SAID I WANTED GENE!" Gritz said, pointing towards the mustache-less Nicelander "Who's this lil SHRIMP!"
"Gritz, ITS ME!" Gene said pointing towards his lip where his mustache once was "I just…I lost it okay?!"
The fighter folded his huge arms together as he glared down at the mayor "Oh, wanted to make yourself look even LESS like a dork, HUH?"
Gene scowled up to the man, his temper growing "Cut the comedy you hooligan! I'm here now! What do you want?"
Gritz let out a cruel laugh, his head going back "I think it's OBVIOUS what I want! I want to pay you back for kickin' me back in the station!"
"W-what?!" the mayor said, taking a step back "YOU PUNCHED ME AND THREW ME IN A TRASH BIN! ISN'T THAT ENOUGH PAYBACK?!"
"Unfortunately for you, NO." Gritz returned his brow furrowing "Ya see, that lil kick to the face ya gave me? That's somethin' a lotta the guys in this arcade WON'T forget. I mean, a big guy like ME bein' taken down by a fatty like you? It doesn't look well on my rep sheet!"
"And you think THIS does?!" Calhoun yelled from the crossed, punching a crony in the face.
"WAS I TALKIN' TO YA BLONDIE?!" Gritz shouted.
"HEY!" Gene snapped "You have no quarrel with Calhoun, Felix….or anyone else here! You said you wanted to take this fight to me? Then BRING IT!"
A snicker escaped Gritz' throat, then another. Soon, the man was nearly on his knees in laughter.
"Wow! Ya really got some guts didn't ya, small fry?!" the man chortled "In a way, it's almost CUTE!"
"I am NOT cute…." Gene said in a surprisingly calm voice "I'm just small and round."
"Fine then…." Gritz said, running his hand gracefully through his hair "How about this? In replacement of another beat down, how 'bout this? Since you're the mayor here and anything you say goes, why don't you promise US that from now on, you and your lil game of shrimps will pay us a tribute? Ya know, so you guys RECOGNIZE YOUR PLACE here in the game!"
"A TRIBUTE?" Gene blurted out "This isn't the mafia! You can't do that to us, no matter how much you threaten us!"
"Oh, but you want your game SAFE don't you, at least from US?" the man said with a smile "You saw what we did to G.I. Jane over there and Big Rig! What makes you think you can do any better, CHUBBY?"
Gene growled in anger but his mind quickly went back on the bet he was still under.
Curse all of this!
If he were in his right mind, he would have thrown the bet off and put a stop to the nonsense right then and there! But for whatever reason, whether it was pride or just the fear of failing at something AGAIN, Gene suppressed all his anger and instead gave Gritz a collected look.
"NO."
"Erm, EXCUSE ME Mayor Shorty?"
"I said NO." Gene said in a cold tone "There is no way I am letting the likes of YOU turn my home into some sort of horror house of fears! We have enough games like that!"
Gene then marched right up the man, his head up and his chest out.
"You like DEALS? Well, here's MY deal, young man!" Gene said, his arms crossed "Get out of my game or else you'll face even MORE charges than you've already racked up, got it?"
"An' who's gonna stop me?"
"Surge of course!" Gene snapped, still standing tall despite he knew he didn't have a single threat over the huge man.
"You mean, IF he finds out about this…." Gritz chuckled, rolling his eyes "Last time I check, the guy was sending sparks in the air, and not in a GOOD way!"
"You're threats don't scare me…." Gene replied "Because I know what you really are…."
"Oh?" the man said, growling a bit as he looked down at Gene, poking him roughly in the stomach "And what would I be?"
"You're nothing but a BRUTE." Gene spat "A bully who has nothing better to do than harass innocent game characters because you nothing else to accomplish!"
The large man growled angrily, his eyes narrowing at each word that came from Gene's mouth.
"I've seen your type before. I BET you have fun knocking lil guys like us around DON'T you?" the mayor said, stepping beside the man and giving him the once over "Well, I hope you enjoy it because I can just tell, from the way you're goin' about, it won't before you AND your group of roadies over there will take a fall and land harder than a rotten red wood!"
"What are you sayin', OLD. MAN?" Gritz said, glaring angrily at the tiny mayor.
"What I'm SAYIN' is THIS….." Gene quipped, his eyebrow arching. "You're just the BRUTE who's going to get his sooner than you think!"
That line.
That classic, CLASSIC Gene line.
Ralph was all too familiar with the statement and as everyone stood still, he could only fear how Gritz would react to it!
"Thanks for the advice…" Gritz said gruffly "LEMME GIVE YOU SOME FOR YOU!"
Once again, Gene was given a powerful punch to the face, the man flying back like a rocket into the atrium. To is great MISFORTUNE, who should be coming down the elevator but MARY, the woman walking out just in time to see Gene come careening through the doors and impacting with the wall!
"Gene!" Mary cried as the man landed at her feet "AUUUUURGH! NOT AGAIN!"
Gene rolled over on his back, seeing nothing but stars in his eyes.
"Well, I can say it was less painful than the punch in the station!"
Mary kneels over to the man and lifted up his head, cradling him gently "I KNEW I should have waited until I called for more help!"
The mayor rubbed his sore cheek, feeling something lose within his mouth.
"Urg, let me get back to you on that…"
The man then spit something out on the floor, the white object bouncing twice before coming to a stop in front of both Nicelanders.
A tooth.
"This day just keeps getting BETTER and BETTER…" Gene moaned, leaning back into Mary's arm.
"THAT'S IT!" Mary screeched, standing up and going right for the door "I have had it up to HERE with these brats!"
"M-Mary! WAIT!" Gene said, getting to his feet as he attempted to stop the woman from leaving the safety of the apartment.
But it was far too late to reach Mary. She had watched Gene get abused far too much for her liking and she was ready to give these so called 'fighters' a piece or two of her mind! She continued to walk up to the hulking men, the group laughing it up from their boss' latest attack on Gene.
"EXCUSE ME!" Mary yelled, her hands on her hips.
"OH look at this gentlemen, the little wimp sent his WOMAN after us!"
"Say that AGAIN, young man!" Mary shouted.
"Sorry, I can't hear ya way down there!" Gritz said cruelly, bending down to Mary's height.
An opening.
With a growl, Mary balled up her tiny fist and SLUGGED Gritz right in the nose, the man yelping in shock at the impact.
Silence befell the entire area as everyone started at the two, their mouths agape. Mary huffed angrily, her face bright red in fury. Gritz was of course stunned that he had once again been taken by surprise by a NICELANDER, and it wasn't just ANY Nicelander this time.
It was MARY.
"How DARE you!" Mary said, her little fist shaking "How DARE you come to our home and say such things!"
Mary moved even closer to the man, her body shaking with rage.
"What gives you the right to just come in here and…and TREAT US LIKE THIS! WE'VE DONE NOTHING TO YOU!"
Gritz focused his eyes on Mary and growled evilly.
"You useless creeps! You're only good to THROW!"
Gritz prepared to punch Mary but the Nicelander saw the move coming. Even though she ducked, she still wasn't fast enough to completely avoid a hit, getting knocked back on the arm and sent tumbling back to the front of the apartments.
"MARY!" Felix screamed, reaching out for the woman.
The Nicelander took a rather nasty tumble before landing at the feet of Gene, the man only able to let out a silent scream as the woman he loved lay before him, injured.
Everything stopped.
Everything crashed.
Gritz had just laid his hands on Mary.
He had just HIT Mary.
HE HAD HURT MARY.
Gene was still frozen in shock as he looked down at the woman. In frazzled mind, it was if Gritz had beaten Mary to a pulp just to spite him.
But in reality, her injuries were not as server as he thought.
True, she was hurt….but the worst of it was a twisted ankle.
"Oooow…." The woman moaned, a little dizzy from her spill "That's what I get for letting my guard down!"
Gritz snorted once before he turned back to the others, not at all moved at what he had done to the tiny woman.
"Well people, shall we return to business?"
And with that, the gang attacked the residence again, the battle starting back up and becoming worse than before.
Mary tried to pick herself up but the pain in her ankle quickly sent her back to the ground.
"Ouch!" the woman hissed through her teeth, looking at her swollen ankle "Great! Now wh-?!"
Ding.
"What the-?"
Ding.
DING.
Mary looked at the clock in the hall, seeing that the hands were now on 12.
Midnight.
He did it.
Gene won.
He had gone the entire bet without getting angry once!
But did it really matter now?
Niceland was a mess. People were running and screaming for cover as Gritz and his gang wrought havoc throughout the entire area.
What was the point of winning a bet when there was nothing to be won?
Mary moved over to the wall, picking herself up as she watched the chaos ensue, "That's it! I'm calling Chun-Li or Eggman or SOMEONE! They should be able to stop this, right Gene?!"
No answer.
"Gene?"
Again, nothing.
The woman turned her neck to the side slowly, only to be met with one of the most horrifying things she had ever laid her eyes upon.
Gene stood in the door way, his entire body rage red with the most furious look on his face. His hands were balled tight, the veins showing through his skin. With each passing second, the bottle up anger that Gene had been withholding in himself was starting to bubble over.
Every word that had been thrown at him, every trick that had been played on him, everything that had hurt the man's pride and happiness, it was all building up into a massive bomb of anger.
And seeing Mary get hurt was the flint that lit the fire.
Mary's blood ran cold as she looked into the eyes of Gene, seeing that the man was now overcome with pure, untapped rage.
She took a step back, then another, and without thinking twice she DOVE behind the couch for cover.
There was no way she was going to get caught in this blast!
Back outside, Gritz was having the time of his life, sending the poor residence of Niceland fleeing for their lives. Even belter, Ralph was no match for his energy and strength and it didn't take long for the fighter to overpower the wrecker.
"HAD ENOUGH!? HAD ENOUGH?!" Gritz roared, giving Ralph another punch in the stomach.
The wrecker fell back, the wind knocked out of him as he watched the fighter approaching him, a horrible sneer on his face.
"Hmmph, just as I thought…." Gritz cackled "Everyone in this game is a softy. You're not even worth my-!"
"GWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
"Time-?"
Before Gritz had a second to react, he felt what he thought was a CANNON ball plow him in the face, the impact so great that the man FLEW off his feet and tumbled back a good five yards before skidding into a nearby tree!
"Holy COW! What in the world was THAT!?" Felix asked, looking around frantically.
Gritz shook his head, trying to see what had attacked him but as he looked forward, the only thing he saw as a short, stout figure stomping over to him, his entire body red and the most horrific of scowls etched onto his face.
GENE.
"WHAT THE-?!"
"Is that….GENE?!" said Calhoun, looking in disbelief.
The Nicelander marched over to Gritz, walking on the man's chest before stopping right at his face, grabbing him by the collar.
"You said you wanted a FIGHT!?" the man growled.
Gritz could only blink in surprise; what in the arcade was going on?!
"Then FIIIIGHT!" Gene roared, somehow finding the strength to knock Gritz UP into the tree he had previously been lying on. The fighter let out a painful yowl as he landed in the branched, all before falling out due to his weight. The man didn't even have a second to recover before he felt another blow hit him in the face, this time sending him ROLLING to the trolley station.
"Homman, homman, w-wha-?" the man said, all before looking up to see that Gene was RUNNING right towards him!
"AW NAH! AW NAH!" the man shouted, trying to get up before the Nicelander could take a swipe at him.
"I'M NOT THROUGH WITH YOU YET!" Gene bellowed as he JUMPED into the air and landed on Gritz, grabbing onto a large section off a broken picnic table and LIFTING it above his head, only to bring it down on the man as it if were a bat!
WHAM!
WHAM!
WHAM!
"WAIT! WAIT! WE CAN TALK THIS OVER!" Gritz managed to finally pipe in, trying his best to roll away from the fuming man who was still landing blows on him.
"TALK IS OVER!" Gene screeched, tossing the broken object to the side and diving not Gritz, wrapping his arms around the man's throat and biting his ear as if he were some sort of rabid animal. Gritz let out a painful scream as he shoot to his feet, throwing his arms as he tried to throw Gene off of him.
"GET HIM OFF ME! GET HIM OFF ME!"
The fighter then tripped on a pile of fallen bricks, sailing fast first into the mud pile but even this didn't stop Gene's rage. Even covered in mud, Gene continued to beat the chili-cheese stuffing out of Gritz! He then began SLAMMING Gritz' face into the mud hole, smushing it further and further into the muck.
"THE MUD TASTE GOOOOD, DOESN'T IT?! YUM, YUM!"
"Aw MAN! GRITZ!" called out on of the gang members, running over to his leader. The team tried to pry Gene off their leader but the man then latched onto his face, sinking his teeth into the man's face.
"YOU MORONS! YOU'RE MAKIN' HIM MADD-AAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
The first member pulled harder but the Nicelander wouldn't release his hold!
"YOU LITTLE FREAK! LET GO!" the member said, smacking Gene upside his head in anger.
Big mistake.
"Whoopsies!" Calhoun said with a snicker, enjoying every minute of what was happening.
The mayor then turned his focus on the gang members, his eyes wide and filled with burning rage. He let out a snarl before leaping on the men and, much to everyone surprise (and horror), he began to go at the group much like a weasel would go after a flock of defenseless chickens.
"AUUUUUUUURGH! HE'S GOT MY ARM!"
"OH PROGRAMMERS! STOP HIM!"
"GWAARGH!"
The group of characters could only look on in shock and awe as the entire team of men were being picked off one by one by Gene! A flurry of fighters crawled and attempted to claw their way free from the furious man but they were unable to escape. When one tried to free himself, he found himself being dragged right back into the heart of the fight, screaming and grasping at the ground in horror.
"OH PLEASE HAVE MERCY AND HELP ME!"
"COME BACK HERE, BOY!" Gene roared, dragging the other man back into the fight.
"HE'S RIPPIN' ME APAAAAAAAART!"
"Sh-should we step in?" asked Ralph, looking down at Calhoun.
The sharp SNAP of a breaking bone filled the air, followed by a horrific scream. Felix winced in pain.
"I think Big Gene has this in order!"
"THIS IS FOR DON!" Gene said, punching a member in the nose "THIS IS FOR ROY!" he screamed, taking a rake and smashing it against another fighter's skull!
"AND THIS IS FOR MAAAAAAAAAAAAARY!"
Gene then dive bombed right into Gritz' stomach, going in so far that one could see the imprint on his face on the other man's back!
"Hey, what are we? Chopped liver?" Norwood snorted, crossing his arms.
"NORWOOD."
Inside the apartment, Mary just STARED at what Gene was doing, much too taken aback to really say anything to stop the fighting.
Not that she wanted to anyway, what with the things the Gritz Gang had done to Niceland.
The woman slowly opened the door, limping her way to the crowd to get a better view of the melee. Seeing Mary standing next to him, Blake patted Mary on the shoulder though he shook his head, as if he weren't sure to be happy or just concerned at this point.
"Mary? You are a lucky, LUCKY woman."
"AND WHY IS THAT?!"
After what felt like an eternity of fighting, the pummeling then came to a stop, Gene standing atop the pile of downed fighters and panting heavily, torn fabric and the broken rake in his hand.
"You guys have anything else you'd like to say?!" the man shouted.
The only response that came was the sound of moans and whimpers. A sob here and there, but no one said a word.
After that beat-down, Gritz and his boys were at least intelligent to know to keep their mouths shut now!
Still fuming, the Nicelander jumped from the pile, pushing aside few of the others to make his way towards Gritz. The little man then grabbed the beaten man by what was left of his jacket, pulling him close.
"N-N-now! Let's talk this through!" Gritz said with a nervous smile on his face, his skin turning a bit blue "Th-th-there's no need for such senseless violence!"
"Oh, you want to talk now?" Gene said in a surprisingly calm voice "Don't worry! We're gonna have us a TALK!"
The Nicelander yanked Gritz from the pile and threw him in front of the Nicelanders and the others, stepping right on the man's back.
"You see these guys here?" Gene said, pointing towards his neighbors "These are MY friends. These are MY family and I don't appreciate the way YOU have been treating them!"
Gritz whimpered as his eyes scanned across the group, seeing that they were now looking at him in pity rather than fear. The mayor then took the man roughly by his chin, turning him again so they were seeing each other eye to eye.
"Now…I can tell deep, deep, DEEP down there has to be a man with SOME sense in his skull! I want to ask THAT man if he knows what would be the best thing to do now!"
Gritz gulped, shivering a bit in Gene's hold "I-I should apologize?"
"Aaaand?" Gene said with a smile.
The fighter blinked. What else did Gene want him to do?
"I-I should never talk to you or anyone like this again?"
"AAAAAAAND?" Gene said, gripping his fist tightly.
"A-AND MY TEAM WILL CLEAN UP EVERYTHING HERE! JUST PLEASE! DON'T HURT US AGAIN!"
"Wonderful!" Gene said brightly, dropping Gritz like a stone "See! So much can be accomplished if you act with GRACE instead of fighting all the time!"
Gene wiped his hands clean as Gritz shivered near him but after a moment or two, Gene turned back, glaring at the huge man furiously.
"APOLOGIZE!"
"GAH! I'M SORRY! WE'RE ALL SORRY!" the man screamed, tears pouring from his eyes.
And with that, Gene turned on his heels and marched happily back towards the apartment, the others just watching in shock. The man wasn't a foot towards the door when he stopped.
"What is it NOW?!" asked Norwood, pulling Nel back a bit without thinking.
"OH MY GOODNESS!" shouted Gene in surprise.
The man then turned, his entire composure having gone from rage to great concern. He ran back towards the crowd and embraced Mary into his arms tightly.
"Are you alright, dear?!"
"ME?! What about YOU?!" Mary asked, still squished between Gene's body.
Without another word, Gene scooped Mary into his arms and carried her back towards the apartments.
"Those horrible men! Hitting a woman like you in such a beastly manner! I'll get you back to your apartment and make sure you're alright!"
"But dear-!"
Gene nuzzled the woman softly, the woman blushing as she let out a squeak.
"Please, let me take care of you dear…."
Mary looked up at Gene, seeing the pain and worry in his eyes. Without another word, the little woman just gave a nod, clutching onto Gene as the man walked into the elevator, heading up to higher floors.
Once the two were gone, the others looked at the huge mess that lay before them.
Felix knew that he had his work cut out for him.
"M-Might as well get started…."
"I don't think so…." Calhoun said with a slight laugh "As Gritz said, he AND his buddies would be the ones who would clean up THIS mess!"
Grtiz crawled over to Calhoun, looking as if he were ready to jump to his feet and fight her again "Are ya kiddin'?! Who says we-?!"
Calhoun then planted the bottom of her boot on the man's face "Not so fast there, kiddo! I would HATE to inform Mayor Gene that you disobeyed his orders!"
The woman then sneered, her eye twinkling.
"It would be a SHAME for you guys to have to go through another BEAT-DOWN, wouldn't it?"
Gritz' entire face went pale, fear coming into his eyes. He then shrank down, crawling back on his knees as he scuttled over to his gang.
"NO, NO, NO! WE'LL GET EVERYTHING CLEANED UP! WON'T WE BOYS?!"
The gang nodded in unison as they then jumped to their feet and began to tidy up the yard, not stopping once even with their injuries. Calhoun snickered, watching men toil away.
"Didn't I tell ya honey? Things would work out just FIIIIIINE!"