Hopefully I can put this out before I die from not-type-itis...
Now...
Vanellope - On your marks, get set, CHAPTAH!
ME - GRAVY SOCKZ!
(A/N) This story is turning into a 40 to 50 chapter story! YAY! :3
Chapter 12
That Dark Paladin S%#$!
Ray stood up and stared at his aunt.
"Well... Ralph isn't really human... He's code. And I need to get him out of my DS somehow." Ray just stood there as his aunt stared him down.
"Ok. So who wants dinner? I'm starving!" Aunt Nora shouted as she went back into the house.
"Umm... What just happened?" Ray queried as he fell back onto the grass.
"They don't care about who you date or what they're made of. I just want you to be happy. Besides, your too valuable to the family to let go of." Aunt Nora joked as she walked inside.
Ray and Vanellope sat there for 5 minutes before they spoke.
"So... Want some fried chicken?" Ray inquired to break the silence.
"Is it chocolatey?" She inquired as Ray threw her on his shoulders.
"Not really, but you'll like it." He replied as they entered the house.
"RAY!" a voice from behind Ray shouted as he ran up.
"Cousin Carter... I thought you would be here."
"Yeah! I saw the thing. Well just so you know, I wiped their memories of your code transformation, but I couldn't do anything about your paladin moment."
"How..."
"I'm a Codemaster in Delaware. Duh! By the way... You and Ralph make the best couple! I could write a sitcom on your life! Too bad he got kidnapped..." Carter just rambled on and on while Ray and Vanellope ate.
"How about we team up?"
"NO!" Ray and Vanellope said simultaneously.
"Look... You're family, and that's cool, but you've gotta chill. Please?"
"Yeah... I'm not usually like this."
"You're a Codemaster. We'll end up fighting together soon. Now I'm gonna split. I'm sleepy."
Ray sat up, saluted his cousin and helped a half-asleep Vanellope out the door.
"I swear V, my Aunt Nora must be an awesome cook if you're this sleepy."
"She's even better then Burger Time..." Vanellope yawned as she sat on the lawn.
"To my house!" Ray shouted as he pressed a button on his gauntlet and transported them into his living room.
"You go to bed. I've got to find out what game Stinkbrain is in."
Ray hugged Vanellope good night and dragged his half-concious body to the kitchen.
"Princess Toothache! I need you to stay here today. I'll be back in 4 hours."
"Where you goin Ray?" Vanellope inquired as she sat up in bed.
"I'm going to a funeral."
"For who?"
"My grandpa."
Vanellope was speechless as she stared Ray down.
"Why so late?"
"My dad wanted it to seem like a natural death, so he hid the truth for 6 years."
"The man forced your father to turn you into a dark paladin and you're gonna go mourn his death?"
"He was the one who gave me the courage to be me."
"What?"
"Before the darkness consumed him, he was a great man. He always had my back, he never stopped believing, and he was always there. It wasn't my idea anyways, I'm doing this for my dad."
"Oh... Well did you want me to go?"
"I can't ask you to go in that." Ray replied while gesturing to her clothes.
"Besides, I need you to receive a package that's supposed to arrive today. Only open the door if a guy named Carlton knocks. And if he does, please remind him that he has a key..." Ray deadpanned as he slipped on some dress shoes.
"Ok..." Ray hugged Vanellope and walked off towards the cemetery.
"Glad you could make it." Ray's father, Frank, greeted his son with a hug.
"Let's just get this done. I've got someone waiting on me and I've got Carlton coming through early tommorow morning for an update. I want to catch him before he goes back to the frontlines."
"I know you and your granddad didn't end off on the right foot, but you shouldn't be so nonchalant about this!"
"Well what'd you expect?! I'm the reason he's dead!" Ray barked as he stomped into the sanctuary where the service was being held and just sat there as it went on.
By the end, he was still as stoic as he was when it started.
Everyone filed to their cars so they could see the burial.
Ray rode with his dad.
"So Ray... How's life?"
"Fine. How's Rene?"
"You know I'm not dating her anymore."
"Ok then... How about sports? I know I could care less, but maybe you could ramble on about touchdowns and shit while you drive."
"Ray! What's gotten into you?"
"Haterade and 12 gallons of the shit!"
They reached the grave site and Ray hopped out of his dad's car.
He strolled over to the grave site with the rest of his family and waited for the priest to finish off the prayer.
But instead of a priest, they got Ashton.
"What's your fucking damage?! Does the league pay you to make my life a living hell?!" Ray shouted as he stood before him.
"Well, I just thought someone would like revenge and who better than your own grandpa, the former Shadow King!" Ashton cackled as he shot a gray beam into the casket and from the shadows came a dark, twisted version of his grandpa.
"NO! What have you done?!" Ray shouted as he dropped to his knees
"Boy! You gon pay for puttin me in that hole!" He shouted before charging his grandson.
"No more bad dreams for Ray... No more bad dreams." Ray chanted as he dodged the punches.
"DIE!"
"NO! I WON'T!" Ray shot a bolt of electricity at Shadow Gramps, but he deflected it.
"Codemaster! I'm gonna wreck it!" He donned his armor and continued to deflect his gramps's blows.
"Stop! I didn't want to kill you! You gave me that choice all those years ago! You chose the fight to the death that day!" Ray barked as tears slid down his face.
"Lies! You always wanted to be evil! You just wanted me out the way so you could have all the power!"
"No! I always wanted to spend time with you! And now it's my job to put you to rest! X-Mode Activate!"
The x appeared around Ray's body, but his time when it covered him, lightning bolts we're all over his armor. Even his X's looked like lightning bolts.
"Huh? What's this about?"
Shadow Gramps gasped at this form.
"You've accessed the true power of X-Mode. And so young..."
"Huh? Pops... What do you know about the Codemasters?" Ray inquired as he stepped to the evil being.
"The Codemasters and the Paladins are linked. You need to find the connection. Then you can bring peace to both worlds. I always knew you'd grow up to do great things. Now set my soul to rest."
"I love you, Pops." Ray spawned his Thunderblade and drew the kanji symbol for rest under Shadow Gramps.
"Night Night..." He whispered as the seal sent him back into the casket.
"Ashton left during the fight. Probably saw it going bad. That weasel." Ray thought to himself as he walked up to his dad.
"I'm gonna head out. I've done what I came to do. Reconcile and move on. I'll see you at Christmas..." Ray walked off into the distance and teleported home.
Ray found himself in the white room that night.
"Codemaster X! Where are you?"
"You rang?" He replied as he appeared from thin air.
"What's the deal with the new X-Mode?"
"You've accessed its full power. When you put all of your baggage on the table, you allowed your soul to become light again. This brought out the true X-Mode. But have you noticed there is still one blank card left?"
"Yeah... What's that about? Is it because I'm the leader of the Five?"
"Yes... It's the final level of the Codemaster. Even I haven't achieved that level. But you can and you will. Just follow your paladin heritage. This connection is the lock on your true power. Find the key and let it out."
The room started to fade but Ray had one more question.
"What do the Paladin clans have to do with the Codemasters? And what do you call the final mode?"
"The first question is your new quest and the second... I call it... Beta Mode..."
Vanellope - When do I get another appearance?
Me - Why do you care?
Vanellope - Isn't the story about me?
Me - What gave you that idea?
Vanellope - The next chapter when you... *Gets a candy apple stuck in her mouth*
Me - That's my job! Jacker!
R.E.V.I.E.W.- Responsive Enlightenment of Views Importantly Expressed to the Writer
(A/N) This chapter was dedicated to a great man: Eugene "Pops" Long R.I.P. 12/21/12
Preview: After New Year's Day, It's time for Ralph to go back home, but Ray can't find him! And the medal is gone too.
He has Justin track it down, but the search ends up telling them that Ashton has it!
Also, Ralph has also been tracked to a law game in Ray's DS: Apollo Justice, Ace Attourney!
In the clutches of Ashton, will the medal prove to be a weapon of mass destruction, or will it blow up in his face due to a secret design flaw?
And what is Ralph on trial for?
STAY TUNED!