"I will not be defeated this time!" Hacker growled.
"What makes you think that?" Jackie inquired sharply, gripping the steel bars of the confined cage that imprisoned her. The villain let out another growl and marched over to her, grabbing her by the collar of her purple sweatshirt.
"I didn't think it was possible for you to get more mouthy. Then again…" He released her with a smirk. "It's what teenagers do, isn't it? You're so… mature now."
Jackie tilted her chin forward in a defiant gesture.
"...Yet, just like a child, you allowed yourself to be captured so easily. Some things never change." Hacker laughed boisterously and Jackie gripped the steel bars tighter. She was determined not to show the weakness and fear that had manifested inside of her the moment she was captured in a surprisingly clever manner. It was no question that the villain had stepped up his game over the past few years.
"They're coming for me. Like they always do." She snapped.
"Oh, but of course. This time is no different, is it?" Hacker sneered, "The rest of the noble cybersquad will come and rescue Jackie. The Hacker is defeated and retreats to the dark recesses of the Northern Frontier, humbled once again. Am I right?" He feigned sadness.
Jackie said nothing but continued to glare daggers into the villain.
"No. Not this time." He said coldly, and the teen was shaken to her core.
"...This time will be different. Very different." Hacker released her clothing in favor of grabbing her by the throat. Jackie yelped and squirmed, but his grasp was surprisingly firm.
"Quiet, or I'll do much worse." The two locked eyes for a moment, and tears involuntarily filled her brown ones. "...And maybe I'll do a number on your little boyfriend, too." He spoke the latter part of his sentence mockingly.
Jackie closed her eyes tightly in an effort to keep her tears from escaping, but it was a moot effort.
Oh my God, he's actually gonna kill me. She thought, This is it.
"Boss! Boss! Those kids are here! Right outside the Wreaker!" Delete came running up to his boss, waving his stringy metal arms frantically. Hacker let out another boisterous laugh and released his prisoner, who collapsed to the floor of the cell and then broke into shuddering sobs.
"Let them come. I'm beyond prepared this time." He strode over to his control panel and pulled out a large black box with latches on it. Jackie furiously wiped her tears in order to get a read on what he was pulling out, and when she did, another pang of terror struck her in the heart and she gasped.
"Jax?" Slider switched on the light as Jackie sat bolt upright, a hand flying to her chest. She jerked away when he put a hand on her shoulder, letting out a yelp.
"Jackie… hey, what's wrong?" Her fiance inquired urgently, "A bad dream?"
She nodded before letting out a jagged sob.
"I… I dreamt about… about him. The last time we- oh God…"
"Shit… oh, Jax…"
She threw her arms around him, now yearning to be held. He quickly wrapped his arms around her, also burying his face in her shoulder. He then let her cry for a few minutes, gently rubbing her back.
"I just… I haven't had that dream in such a long time." She whispered after her sobbing had slowed, "Haven't remembered it in such a long time. Fuck. It was him. He has to be the one who-who-"
"Jackie, no. It can't be. He's far too decrepit and weak."
"You said it yourself: he's weak and helpless until he isn't." She lamented, "Maybe something happened and he got his charge back."
Slider sighed and started rocking her gently.
"All that matters is that we're safe here, on earth. He can't touch us here. Whoever hurt you can't touch us here."
"I wish I could believe that." She whispered, "I really, really want to, but I can't."
Slider continued to hold her close until she pulled away in order to wipe her eyes.
"I don't want to dream of him ever again. Hell, I don't want to dream about anything ever again."
"Well, like I said, there's no real need for you to sleep anymore. You just have to stay busy." Slider reminded her.
"Stay busy? With what?" She rasped.
"Well… I tend to do a lot of reading, or watching TV… take a nice long shower, go for a walk…"
Jackie thought hard for a moment, biting her lower lip softly. Slider reached out and gently tilted her chin up with his fingers.
"Or… maybe we could do something together."
"...Like what?"
Her fiance pulled out his phone and typed furiously.
"Ah-ha. Perfect."
Jackie looked at him curiously.
"The Square is open until midnight tonight." He said, tilting her chin up again.
A large smile spread across her face and she wiped her eyes.
"We're going ice skating?"
"Sure. Shouldn't be too busy."
Jackie leapt out of bed and darted to the dresser. Slider smiled, relieved at his ability to get his beloved out of such a dark funk.
"I'm just gonna let my father know. Come out to the living room when you're ready." He stood up and ventured to the living room, where Coop was leaning forward and looking at the TV with an almost anticipating expression.
"Umm… pops? What's so interesting?" Slider asked.
"Okay, so there's this show, right? Where people just go online and talk to a random other person but it turns out that person is lying about who they are and so the other person needs to email this other guy to help them find out who this other person really is? It's really good."
"Oh. Jackie really likes that show. It's called "Fish" or something, right?"
"Catfish, I think." Coop squinted.
"Right. Anyway, I'm taking her to the ice skating rink. Wanna come with?"
"Nah. I don't wanna intrude on your alone time." Coop smiled. "Besides, I'm actually pretty invested in this. That Nev is quite the detective."
"I'm ready." Jackie walked into the room, clad in black leggings and a purple skater dress.
"Alright. Let's head out." Slider smiled.
"Don't stay out too late." Coop called after them as they walked out the door. The rink was just a few blocks away, but Jackie stayed close to Slider and her hand rested on the pepper spray in her jacket pocket. He took her other hand and the two walked in a comfortable silence. The chilled November air served as a slight comfort to Jackie- her nightmare had left her sweaty.
"...You know, the reason I wanted to take you skating… was to bring back a happy memory. Our first date." Slider shattered the silence at last and she smiled.
"Yeah. Skating in Penguia." She said thoughtfully. The memory played in her head and she leaned closer to him, squeezing his hand gently. "I was so nervous."
"Yeah, me too." He chuckled lightly, "But I'd say it went pretty well." They fell into another comfortable silence and arrived at the rink ten minutes later. It was dead silent when they arrived, and Jackie felt a renewed sense of tranquility.
"We close at 12." The surly teen at the skate rental desk reminded the couple as they handed him cash.
"We got that. Thanks." Slider said, albeit sharply. The couple then sat down on a bench and made quick work of lacing up their skates before shuffling onto the empty rink. They started their circuit slowly, still holding hands.
"I'm curious… what do you remember from that day?" Slider asked, and Jackie looked at him quizzically.
"Besides being super nervous and nearly losing my balance on multiple occasions? I don't know."
"I do remember having to catch you a lot." He smiled.
"Hey, I was completely out of practice. You were just like, "Let's go ice skating!" and I was like, "Um, okay?"" She nearly fell forward as they traversed to the center of the rink and he steadied her.
"I just thought it would be romantic. Penguia is very pretty, no?" They stood in the center of the rink for a moment, their foreheads pressed together. Jackie giggled softly.
"It is. And, I mean, I asked for a second date afterwards."
"We were so young then. 16 and 14." Slider planted a kiss on her forehead and then prompted her to start skating in a circle with him.
"I guess we are getting up there now." She paused. "Wait… how do we age?"
"We're not vampires, Jax. We age pretty normally, especially those of us who are partially human." Slider laughed.
"I guess there's so much I don't know about being a borg. Like, can I upgrade myself?" She inquired.
"Sure, if you want to. I upgraded my dexterity sensors a while ago." He briefly pulled away and did a dramatic spin.
"You've always been good on your feet." Jackie giggled, "I think I might do that too."
"Just be careful and let Dr. Marbles do it. If you upgrade the wrong way, it can have the opposite effect and can even cause corruption."
"Corruption? How?"
"Well… it's like a computer with a virus. That's the best way I can describe it. You could start acting funky. Glitching even."
"What happens if I glitch?"
"It depends on the cyborg and the type of damage received, like how magnetite affects us all differently. The most common side effect is an alignment change. A good borg turning evil, and vice versa." Slider said, "It's a pretty scary thing."
"Can somebody… like… force an alignment change?"
"You're asking if cyborgs can be hacked? Of course. I've never seen it happen, but it can, absolutely." Slider cringed.
"Damn, I gotta watch out, huh?" Jackie said worriedly.
"Yeah, but… it's highly unlikely. Not many people- or, rather, borgs, know how to do it, believe it or not." He squeezed her hands and she let out a sigh.
"Is there anything else I should know…?"
"Just that you still have emotions, and it's okay." He said softly.
"They're not altered in any way…?"
"Well, they're mostly simulated and artificial, unfortunately, but you still have them and feel them as strongly as a human."
"I still really love you." She said softly, "And I don't want to think of that as artificial."
"I love you too, Jax. No matter what." He pressed his lips to her forehead again and she gently took his face in her hands before giving him a tender kiss on the lips in return.
"Wicked, there's someone outside the hangar." Buzz remarked, donut crumbs falling from his mouth and onto the control panel. The witch looked up from the magazine she was reading.
"Mmm… the security system will deal with it." She said nonchalantly.
"Umm… it seems to be deactivated?" The rotund robot said quizzically. Wicked huffed and set the magazine on the nearby coffee table.
"Deactivated? What did you idiots d-"
There was a knock on the Wreaker's main hatch.
"...Don't worry, Wickie will deal with it." Wicked lilted, striding to the hatch purposefully, her wand at the ready. When it opened, she was instantly alarmed- there was a human standing there, adorned in a gray hoodie and loose jeans.
"Is The Hacker in…?" The person's voice was low and raspy, as though he'd gone without a sip of water for days.
"Who wants to know?" Wicked said sharply. The young man smirked and removed his hood.
"His biggest fan."
"...Ledge?" The witch's voice was laced with genuine shock. Hacker had only mentioned the wannabe villain a few times, but she remembered his description of the young man: black hair; slate blue eyes; gaunt features.
"The one and only. I'll ask you again: is The Hacker home?"
"He cannot be bothered right now." Wicked said, "You'll just have to-"
"You." Hacker came up behind his consort, lapsing into a coughing fit. "I remember you, your motives."
Ledge smiled.
"My motives are chaos and destruction. Just like you."
"Tell me, why should I give you the time of day? Give me one good reason." Hacker said bluntly. Ledge's smile remained. He was completely unintimidated and totally prepared. He'd played out this exact conversation in his head millions of times within the past few months.
"Because I want them dead."
Hacker was taken aback.
"So it was you. You were the one behind the slaughter of our dear Jacqueline?"
Ledge laughed lightly.
"Attempted slaughter, unfortunately. But I figured you'd appreciate my efforts nonetheless. Not like last time."
"...Come inside." A slow smile stretched across the villain's face and he gestured for the young man to step onto the ship.
"Gladly."
Hacker's henchmen watched from the corner of the ship as the young villain came aboard, exchanging wary glances.
"I must say, Ledge, unlike last time… I am quite impressed with your efforts. Murder? You've attempted what I've only dreamt of doing to those meddlesome earth brats." Hacker sat down on his chair and folded his hands together. Ledge chuckled dangerously.
"They don't deserve to live. Not after what they've done. When I heard what they did to you… well, I saw red. Forgive me for not intervening and not doing what needed to be done sooner; these things take time and a lot of careful planning."
"Yes, I will admit that my impulsivity has led to the downfall of many of my schemes." Hacker sighed dejectedly. "Perhaps you can teach me some things in that regard."
"Are you saying you want to work together?" Ledge's smile grew.
"My, you're eager." Hacker chuckled, "But not yet. As promising as you are now, I must run a test… of sorts…. to determine your capabilities."
"What do I have to do?" Ledge sat down in the chair previously occupied by Wicked.
"You've been watching them, no? You're in the loop with their pathetic lives." Hacker sniggered.
"For the most part." Ledge said nonchalantly.
"Well… ever since your little stunt, they seem to be wary of returning to Cyberspace. Under normal circumstances, that would be highly desirable; however, we need a couple of things from them."
"Jackie and the child. I know." Ledge rested his head on his outstretched palm.
"Very good! Our objectives are definitely aligning at this point in time!" Hacker laughed lightly, causing him to lapse into a second coughing fit. While Ledge and Wicked waited patiently for the fit to subside, Buzz and Delete wandered over to them.
"We can kidnap 'em, boss!" Buzz said, donut crumbs once again flying out of his mouth.
"Yeah! We'll get them and bring them to you, easy!" Delete added. Hacker sneered as his fit subsided.
"You incompetent dunce buckets, this is not your assignment. It's… Ledge's." The cyborg's eyes flashed with desire- desire for pure, unbridled chaos.
"Forgive me, Hacker, but how do you propose we bring them back here? I need to know all the technical aspects before I come up with a plan." Ledge said.
"Just leave that portion of the assignment to me." Hacker replied, "I may be weak, but I'm still damn competent."
"I couldn't agree more." Ledge replied, his smile growing still wider. "Now… it's just a matter of who comes first. Our new cyborg friend… or the girl."