I do not own The Loud House. All rights belong to Nickelodeon.
Chapter 15
Future Lincoln destroyed another base on a tropical forest planet after finding his target, Brock. Future Lincoln slaughtered all the henchmen and destroyed their spaceships and their giant robots. He held Brock by his throat over a pit full of vicious man-eating lizards that were more aggressive than alligators.
"You're a real sadistic bastard, you know that?" Brock asked weakly, with his blood stinging his eyes.
"Yeah, I'm having a ball – the time of my life. Now, where are these time machines coming from?" Future Lincoln asked.
"A network of independent companies. They're being invested by the same person who put a price on your head," Brock answered.
"And who is that?"
Brock chuckled, "You know who it is. She said so herself. You can't hide from her, no matter what part of space and time you're in. Maybe the White Death is coming to an end, huh?"
Future Lincoln glared at him before dropping him into the pit. The lizards growled and roared as they mauled Brock. He didn't have much time to scream as they tore him apart.
Future Lincoln breathed a heavy sigh, "So, now there's a whole network of companies making time machines. Which means more bounty hunters coming after me. Shit, I can't remember the last time I was this popular."
He stood there looking at the jungle, thinking and brainstorming. He can't just destroy them all. That'll take too much time. Follow the money. Which means finding . . . her. Or does he have to?
"I don't really have to find her. I just need to find her money. Her banks. Yeah . . . yeah, let's cut off her piggy bank. Sorry, little me, you're on your own for a while," Future Lincoln summoned a light orb, "Nothing so. Let's hope nothing happens while I'm away," Future Lincoln said before summoning a portal.
Meanwhile in Present Time
Lincoln and Lori stood frozen, staring at the man with glowing dots on his chest, the same as Lincoln.
"Who are you?" Lincoln asked.
The man chuckled, "You don't remember me? Well, of course you don't. You don't know old Edge. This you we haven't met . . . but in the future you and I know each other very well."
Lincoln squinted his eyes as he and Lori stared at him.
"You have no idea how hard it was to find you through time, and I'm sure you're wondering how you didn't see me coming with your future visions," Edge said and then raised his arm to show a strange bracelet with a blinking blue light, "And its thanks to this little beauty. However, it was very difficult to make."
Lincoln closed his eyes to try and see into the future, but he couldn't. It was totally blank. He opened his eyes wide and looked back at Edge, grinning. Lincoln had a million questions racing in his mind, but he knew this guy wouldn't answer all of them. So, he did his best to remain calm.
"What do you want?" Lincoln asked, trying to steady his nerves.
There was a long pause before Edge answered, "I want what all men want. I want everything . . . and more."
Lincoln looked at him, confused, "What does that have to do with me?"
"Your powers. Teleportation and seeing into the future. I want them, and you're going to give them to me," Edge said.
Lori stood in front of Lincoln while aiming her revolver at Edge's head, "Not a chance!"
"I'll make you a deal, Lincoln. Give me your powers, then you and your pretty sister can walk out of here alive . . . or I'll kill you and take from your corpse," Edge said.
Lincoln and Lori glared at him. Lincoln whispered to Lori, "Shoot the ones on the left. I got the right. We'll move to the crates to our right."
Lori gave a slight nod. Then Lincoln quickly aimed his 1911 at the ones on the right while Lori aimed her revolver at the ones on the left. They shot almost simultaneously. Their shots were successful as each man they shot, and blood clouds burst from their chests and backs. Lincoln and Lori were smart to shoot the ones armed with guns. The ones that didn't have guns dropped their crowbars and clubs to grab the guns. As they were getting shot, the two Louds were moving to cover. Edge remained calm, keeping up his smile.
By the time they got to cover, they were out of ammo. They were able to kill eight men, but there were still five left, including Edge. Lincoln and Lori reloaded, but when they finished, the crates glowed a strange turquoise light. The crates lifted off the ground and moved out of the way like they were paperweights. The two Louds looked wide-eyed and saw Edge with his hands glowing the same light as the crates when they moved.
Lori aimed her gun at Edge and fired, but bolts of dark blue lightning zapped in front of him, making the bullets explode into little pieces, flying away from him. Lori and Lincoln were stunned while Edge chuckled. Then he raised his hand at Lori, and giant bolts zapped toward her. Lincoln grabbed Lori just in time and teleported to a different part of the warehouse, away from Edge and his men. The two Louds had their backs to the wall, panting with their hearts racing so fast that their whole bodies were beating like a drum.
"Don't even think about teleporting out of here, Lincoln! If you dare chicken out, I'll kill everyone at a hospital! And believe me, I'll know if you leave! So, either I kill you, or you kill me!" Edge hollered.
Lincoln and Lori looked at each other with fear in their eyes while holding their sidearms close. Beads of sweat trailed down the side of their heads.
"There's no third option, Lincoln! Actually, the third option is I kill everyone at a hospital, including the kids and infants! I have no problem wasting little gremlins, but I know you do, hero! So, come out and face me, Lincoln Loud!" Edge yelled before laughing hysterically
Lori shook her head, "I don't think he's bluffing, Lincoln. This guy is crazy."
"We so have to kill this guy," Lincoln replied, looking over his shoulder.
Lori used her free hand to hold back Lincoln to get his attention.
"We have to be smart about this, Lincoln. Without your future vision powers, you won't see him coming," Lori said.
"I can still teleport ourselves and objects . . . and other people," Lincoln said.
Lori nodded, "We can use that," Lori looked up near the ceiling to the racks and shelves up high, "Can you get us up there?"
"Yeah."
Lincoln teleported both of them to the top of the shelves. They quietly and carefully moved to the edge without being seen or making a sound. They spotted two of the henchmen, and Lori whispered in Lincoln's ear to teleport them to the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Lincoln waited for the two men to walk somewhere they were unseen. Then he pointed his hands to them, closed his eyes to concentrate, and beamed them to the middle of the Pacific. They searched for the other two men and Edge but couldn't find them.
"Lincoln!" Lori warned.
Lincoln looked to see where she was pointing and saw Edge. His hands were glowing, and electricity was charging. Lori's hand was already holding Lincoln's arm, so when he teleported, she went with him to somewhere safe. They got out just in time as Edge's lightning bolts blasted the racks and nearly blew a hole through the warehouse. They rushed to escape so fast that they fell on their sides. When they looked up, they saw a henchman turn around and see them. As he raised his gun, Lori and Lincoln shot him several times until he was dead. He fell with multiple bullet holes in his torso, leaving a pool of blood on the floor.
They scrambled to get back on their feet and run. Edge was laughing as he zapped lightning everywhere, destroying the warehouse – with each lightning blast left a roar of thunder. As they ran down the warehouse, the structure collapsed. Lincoln and Lori had to separate to dodge the flaming debris.
"Lincoln!" Lori called.
Lincoln glanced back at Edge coming his way and then turned back to Lori, "Go! Get somewhere safe!"
"I'm not leaving you!"
Edge used his telekinesis to throw heavy and hard objects at them. Each object they narrowly dodged broke and crashed around them. Lincoln and Lori sprinted to cover.
"Lincoln! Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Edge sang, "My offer still stands! Last chance!
The white-haired boy held his gun close, but then he realized that bullets wouldn't work because of his lightning. Lincoln knew he needed to think of a plan. He needed something that would work against him. He looked around as he brainstormed. Then he saw a big forklift and got an idea. He teleported the forklift high above in the sky.
Lincoln stepped out for Edge to see him. Lincoln dropped his gun for Edge to see and then raised his hands up in surrender. Edge grinned as he walked toward Lincoln while powering down.
"Accepting my offer?" Edge asked.
Lincoln hesitantly answered, "Whatever you want, you can have it as long as you don't hurt my family and friends."
Edge kept his confident, cocky smile and said very business-like, "Of course, whatever you want . . . as long as I get what I want."
As he walked closer, Lincoln sensed the forklift falling at great speed. He timed it for Edge to stand out in the open. He held his hand out to the side and teleported the forklift to come from the side toward Edge. As predicted, the forklift flew in like a bat out of Hell. Edge barely had any time to react as he was violently impaled by the blades of the forklift and hurled to the wall. The blades went through his stomach and out his back to the wall. He puked blood while grunting in pain. He shot a glare at Lincoln and tried to speak but then slowly died with his eyes open. Lincoln breathed a heavy sigh of relief and felt weak to the knees.
However, the last henchman yelled angrily while aiming his gun at Lincoln, "Die, you motherfucker!"
A gunshot was fired, and Lincoln flinched. He looked at his body but saw no bullet wound nor felt any pain of one. He looked up and saw the henchman frozen for a few seconds before blood oozed out of his mouth, and he fell dead. Behind him was Lori, aiming her Ruger revolver at him with a wild look in her eyes. She and Lincoln dashed toward each other and embraced in a tight hug. They eased up to look at each other.
Lori held Lincoln's face, "Are you okay?!"
"Yeah, I'm okay. Are you okay?" Lincoln asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Who the hell was that guy? How does he have powers?!"
Lincoln turned to him, "I don't know. Somehow, he knows me."
The two Louds stared at him for a short while. The fires began to spread throughout the warehouse,
"Well, heck with him. Let's get out of here!" Lincoln said.
"Wait!" Lori pointed, "His chest is still glowing."
"So?"
"So, his powers are still there. Lincoln, can you absorb them or something?"
"Absorb them?"
"I don't know! I'm speculating here! You have powers, and maybe they'll fuse with you somehow."
Lincoln looked back at Edge. Then he approached him and slowly touched his chest where the two glowing lights were. Instantly, when his fingers came into contact, the two lights went into his hand, through his arm, and to his chest. Lincoln's body glowed, and power rushed throughout his power. Lincoln grunted and groaned while clenching his fists. After a short while, his body stopped glowing, and both lights were in Lincoln's chest next to the other two. The four lights were synced in almost a crescent moon shape. Lincoln glanced at Lori in confusion.
"Well, you were right about that," Lincoln said.
Lori was about to pick up Lincoln's 1911 gun, but the gun glowed a turquoise light, and it was lifted into the air. Lori gasped as it hovered over to Lincoln's hand, which was illuminating the same light.
Lori gasped a chuckle, "You got two more powers!"
"I guess so," Lincoln smiled.
The warehouse was starting to come down as racks and parts of the ceiling were collapsing in flames.
"We need to get out of here," Lincoln stated.
"Wait! What about that device on Edge's arm? The thing that disrupts your future?" Lori asked.
Lincoln looked back at Edge's device, which was still blinking. He went over to try and get it out of his arm, but flame debris fell on Edge, setting him and the device on fire. The device burned up, and Lincoln suddenly felt his future visions working again. Without wasting time, Lincoln grabbed Lori and teleported somewhere safe. Lori looked around to see they were inside the library, just outside the restroom. She looked at Lincoln, confused.
"We need to wash our faces and hands to get rid of the gun residue. I figured we do it somewhere our family doesn't see and ask too many questions," Lincoln stated.
Lori's eyes widened with a look and nod of understanding. They turned the lights on and washed their hands and faces. They washed the gloves before throwing them away and put on new, clean pairs before cleaning the guns.
"Lincoln, who the heck was that guy? How does he know you?" Lori questioned.
"I don't know, Lori. I don't know who he is or how he found me. I wish we could have gotten that device. At least Lisa could have looked at it and told us something about it," Lincoln said.
Lori's eyes widened as she stood up straight. Then she turned to her brother, "Lincoln. Edge said you know each other very well in the future. Does that he's a time traveler?"
He turned to her with a raised eyebrow, "No way. How's that possible?"
"Honestly, Lincoln, after seeing you and him with superpowers, I'm starting to believe anything is possible."
"But Lori, how could time travel be possible within our lifetime? I'm not even sure if we'll live to see our people set foot on Mars."
Lori leaned against the sink while thinking. Then she looked at Lincoln's reflection.
"Well, somehow, it's possible. How else would he know you? And he had powers from power crystals like you but different powers. How many of them are there?" Lori asked.
Lincoln shrugged, "Probably more than we think. (heavy sigh) Look, right now, none of that matters. We don't have any leads yet. I'll have to wait to see if my future visions show anything. What matters right now is that Lynn is safe. We prevented a bad future, and we escaped with our lives."
Lori sighed while nodding, "You're right. It's been one heck of a night, and we should just go home."
Then, the sounds of their stomachs grumbling erupted.
"How about we have a hot meal before going to bed?" Lincoln asked.
"I don't know if any places are still open," Lori replied.
"I know one in New York City."
"Lincoln, we can't go all the—oh wait, we can actually," Lori chuckled, "I forgot. You can take us anywhere in the world. What's the place?"
"It's a real neat burger joint called Hot Buns. It's as good as Burpin Burger. They're open 24/7. Come on," Lincoln said before teleporting.
They appeared in a nearby alleyway, and Lincoln showed her the restaurant. They ordered what they wanted and picked a booth table. Lincoln looked and studied Lori's face. Her eyes were open without blinking while staring into nothing. She was lost in deep thought.
"Lori? Are you okay?" Lincoln asked.
Lori hesitantly answered, "Actually, Lincoln," she looked up at him with a smile, "I'm great."
Lincoln raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"All that back there was so dangerous, but we survived. We prevailed against impossible odds. We killed some scumbags that were going to hurt Lynn. And then this asshole shows up out of nowhere to try and take your powers . . . but we showed him, didn't we Link?"
Lincoln slightly nodded, "I guess we did."
Lori squinted her eyes with a smile as she went around to sit next to him. Then she wrapped her arms around him, holding him close.
"It was so intense. All that heart-stopping danger. It really gave me a rush. I don't think I've ever felt so alive. We're badass."
"Lori, let's not get carried away. All that was not fun at all," Lincoln said.
"I'm not saying it was. I'm just saying that it was . . . it was a real adventure. Not the fun kind, but the real kind – the real-life danger kind. And we did it to protect Lynn and our family."
Then Lori's eyes got intense, as did her smile.
"No one messes with us. Not our family," Lori said before exhaling, "God, I literally feel fearless right now. I'm seeing everything differently. I got a taste of life, and I want more."
Lincoln's eyes widened, and he was about to speak in bewilderment, but Lori stopped him.
"Not the kind of stuff that we just went through. I mean, life and all its great things. I'm not going to be afraid anymore. Fear has held all of us back from chasing our dreams. Well, I'm not gonna let fear stop me," Lori stated.
"What are you talking about?" Lincoln asked.
Lori held his face and looked deep into his eyes.
"You've opened my eyes to the truth, Lincoln. I've been blinded by my own stupidity and pride. Well, no more. I'm going to live life better. I'm gonna be a better person, a better sister, and a better human being. I got the coolest, bravest, and most amazing brother in the whole world. I want to be more like you, Lincoln. Fearless," Lori explained.
Lincoln's eyes widened at that. As he listened to her, he saw in her eyes that she meant every word she said. The determination, the new energy, the enthusiasm, the honesty, it was all, in a way, making her glow. However, Lincoln was a little afraid for her because there was such a thing as 'too brave.' Many people who were too brave have met fatal ends.
"Lori, I'm a lot of things, especially after tonight, but fearless isn't one of them. All those I did that made me famous, I was scared during each and every event. Some of them I was terrified! Even after what we did, I was scared the whole time. I know you think I'm brave, but that doesn't mean I wasn't scared. Brave means you're doing something you're scared to do," Lincoln explained.
"And that's exactly what I want to be from now on. Lincoln, you did all those things because you were brave enough to go the distance. That's what makes you great. Not these powers, but this right here," Lori said, putting her hand over Lincoln's heart, "This is what makes you great. The strength of your heart and the fire inside it. That's what I want to be more like. I don't want to be afraid to go after what I want in life. I want to fall in love. I want to be successful. I want to be great. So, I'm not going to be afraid anymore. I'm gonna be brave like you, Lincoln, and go after all those things . . . and more importantly, I'm gonna go the distance to protect my family, especially you."
Lincoln couldn't help but feel proud of his big sister. He inspired her. Usually, it's the other way around, where the older siblings inspire the younger ones. Yet here he was, looking at his eldest sister, Lori, who wanted to be like him.
"I love you, Lori. I know you'll achieve those things. You just have to believe in yourself and trust your instincts. You can do anything if you put your mind to it," Lincoln said.
"Oh, I know that now. Believe me," Lori said. She smiled warmly as she caressed his cheek, "I can't get over how amazing you are, Lincoln. I love you so much."
Lori hugged him close, and Lincoln hugged her back. Some of her hair tickled his eye, and he enjoyed the smell of her shampoo and conditioner. This warm moment filled his heart with happiness.
"I love you too, Lori," Lincoln said.
"I'm never letting you go, Linky. No matter where you go or where you live, you'll always be my little brother, and I will never stop being your big sister. I'll never stop loving you," Lori stated before kissing his face.
Lincoln kissed her cheek as well. Lori held his face, and the two looked at each other while smiling.
"You and me, we're gonna kick the world's ass," Lori said.
"Not just the two of us. Our whole family," Lincoln replied confidently.
"Heck yeah!"
Then the food arrived, and Lincoln sat back across from Lori. It was delicious, and the two Louds savored every bit of it. The burger was perfect, along with everything in it. The seasoned French fries were mouthwatering. Lori agreed that a good meal would make them feel better after the life-threatening danger they just went through. It was supposed to be simple. Kill the men that would rape Lynn, and they did that, but they didn't expect the surprise at the end. However, Lincoln gained two additional powers – lightning and telekinesis.
Lincoln left to use the restroom. When he finished and washed his hands, he zapped small lightning bolts in his hands just to see it. Lincoln was eager to test it fully. However, he had other visions – ones involving the twins. Lincoln went back into the bathroom stale to look at the light orb. What he saw made his eyes roll with a groan.
When he returned to the booth, Lori said, "Lincoln, I've been brainstorming ideas for how to convince Lana to stop eating gross stuff, but I can't think of any convincing lies if she asks to see a light orb of it. I was thinking that she gets so sick that it's too ugly to see, but I don't think she'll buy it."
Lincoln sat down with a glum look, "We won't have to lie."
Lori's eyes widened. Lincoln checked to make sure no one was around to see them before he handed Lori the light orb. Lori looked with a pensive look while Lincoln rubbed his eyes.
"I don't know specifically what Lana eats or gets into her system, but she gets a bad bacterial infection that later leads to gastric cancer," Lincoln explained.
"Gastric cancer?" Lori questioned.
"Stomach cancer."
Lori breathed a heavy, sad sigh, "Oh Christ. Does it kill her? Don't tell me. I don't want to know. Either way, we need to make her stop eating gross stuff."
"There's more," Lincoln said.
Lori looked at him pensively as he pulled out another light orb.
"We gotta get Lola to cut down on her sugar appetite because if she doesn't, not only will she get fat . . . she'll get diabetes," Lincoln explained as Lori looked at the light orb.
"Oh, for crying out loud," Lori said, face-palming herself, "What's next? Luna gets liver disease from drinking too much alcohol? Luan becomes a paranoid schizophrenic? Lucy gets leprosy? And what? I get breast cancer?"
"Lori, calm down. There's still time to undo these fates. We just need to get the message across to the twins loud and clear. Also, I don't know about the rest of that stuff, but I'll keep my eyes open," Lincoln assured.
"Is there a plan to convince the twins?"
"Just show them the truth like the bad luck incident. They'll listen and change their ways. Lola especially. She won't want to get fat, but she does like tasty stuff. So, let's introduce her and Lana to fruity smoothies."
Lori nodded. With that, they left for home, but it was late – just after midnight. However, just before Lincoln would teleport, Lori's eyes widened with realization as she stopped Lincoln.
"Wait! What do we tell the others about your new powers?" Lori questioned.
Lincoln's eyes widened as well. He groaned a sigh as he put his hands on his hips while rolling his eyes. Lincoln thought it over as he sat back down in the booth with Lori.
"We'll definitely have to tell them about Edge, but I'm not sure about telling them about the six men that would have hurt Lynn," Lincoln said.
Lori tapped on the table while thinking, and then an idea struck.
"What if instead of telling the whole ugly truth, we . . . water it down," Lori suggested.
Lincoln raised his eyebrow, "Water it down?"
"Yeah. What if we tell them that you saw visions where Edge was going to kill you and take your powers off your dead body? Plus, he did say that he was going to kill everyone at a hospital."
"Only if I didn't face him."
"Whatever. The point is, he was a really bad guy. He had to go, and technically speaking, you did kill him in self-defense. What if we tell them that we were out there in the first place to stop him? Things got out of hand, and he got killed, and you took his powers? Because telling them about what would have happened to Lynn may be too much for them, especially for her. She's still bummed out about the ball game. Telling her what these would have done to her will do more harm than good."
Lincoln thought about it, and Lori made several good points. The family does need to know about Edge and Lincoln's new powers, but maybe they don't need to know that there was a possible future where Lynn could have been gang raped. However, an argument could be made that she and the others should know to be more aware of stranger danger. On the other hand, there's more than one way to get them to know that without scaring them. Plus, telling them about Edge might be all the convincing they need.
Lincoln nodded, "I think you're right. Some truths should be told, but for some other things, ignorance is bliss. Telling about those guys could hurt her confidence and make her less likely to trust other people."
"Agreed. Anyway, let's go home. We'll break the news to them tomorrow," Lori said.
Lincoln teleported them home. He teleported to the veteran's house and returned the guns exactly as he had found them. It took some carefully maneuver to change their clothes and sneak into bed. Fortunately for Lincoln, it was Lisa's turn tonight, and she was a heavy sleeper. When it was her turn, she'd sleep with Lincoln in his bed, and he could get in without waking her. However, when he entered his room, he saw Lisa mumbling and muttering in her sleep like she was having a bad dream. So, when he got in bed, he gently held her, and she slowly quieted down to a peaceful snore.
'Huh, I guess I really do give off positive energy to my sisters,' Lincoln thought.