Among the Crossfire (A Wreck-It Ralph fic)

	"I'm not moving...why is this happening?!" The enemy bugs flew through the depths of space, getting closer. "Dammit! I could easily take them all down if I was in control!" The bugs fired a flurry of laser blasts. "I'm not letting it end like this. I won't--" The shots connected.

	"Hey, Mr. Litwak!" a customer called.
	"Yes?"
	"Jet Blast is acting up again."
	Mr. Litwak sighed. "Are the controls not responding?"
	"Yeah."
	"Well..." Mr. Litwak replied, handing the customer a quarter, "...thanks for letting me know. I'll have it taken care of." He later put up an 'Out of order' sign on Jet Blast's screen.

	"...No. It's not over. It's NEVER OVER!!"

	A week later, after the arcade had closed for the day, Felix was making his way over to Hero's Duty to meet up with Calhoun. Game Central Station was hectic as usual. He noticed someone else heading to Hero's Duty as well, and met up with them at the door.
	"Hello! You visiting, too?" Felix greeted. "I don't think we've met!"
	"Oh, hi! My name is Merin, I'm from Sugar Rush!" Merin replied, waving.
	"I'm Felix, from that humble little game over there," Felix told, pointing to the entrance to Fix-It Felix.
	"So you've been here a while! Ever been to Hero's Duty? I'm going as a tourist today."
	"Then I suppose I'll be your tour guide! Follow me, little lady!"
	Merin giggled to himself. "Alrighty!"

	Inside Hero's Duty, Calhoun and her squad were aware that the arcade had closed, but the beacon hadn't gone off yet.
	"Sergeant, what's going--"
	"Can it, soldier!" Calhoun ordered. "Just hold this position for a bit longer." She fired at the incoming Cybugs, taking a couple of them out.

	Felix and Merin entered into the Hero's Duty world. "Don't mind the lack of color!" Felix exclaimed. "There's still plenty of beauty here!"
	"...Really?"
	"But we'll save that for later. This way!" The two visitors then headed to the left to explore some of the local scenery.

	The Cybug attack would not let up. Calhoun growled. "....Retreat! Get some distance between us and the tower!" Calhoun and her marines, firing as they backed up, made their way toward the game's entrance. Several minutes passed before most of the Cybug attacks let up. "Private Markowski! Take two other guys and head to GCS! Tell Surge Protector what's going on, and shut that door! Do not open it for ANYTHING until we find out what's wrong with the beacon! That's an order, understand?! And you let me know the second that door is sealed so we can deal with things on our side!"
	"Yes ma'am! That door will not open for ANYTHING!" Markowski replied. He talked to a couple of other marines, who then followed behind him as he ran toward the entrance.
	"The rest of you, keep sharp!" Calhoun instructed. "Action is less frequent further from the tower, but there's the odd stray bug, and if even ONE gets loose, it'll be Sugar Rush all over again!" The squad stayed relatively close together about 10 meters or so from the door, but ensuring that all directions were covered. A few smaller Cybugs tried to get close, but were shot down easily enough. Ten minutes passed. The group was getting tense. Calhoun sighed.
	Suddenly, there was a signal from Calhoun's communicator. "Sergeant! We've got the door sealed. You're good to go!"
	"Good work, for a change, Markowski!" Calhoun replied. "I'll be in touch once we've taken this dog behind the shed." She then powered off the communicator and put it back on her belt. "Alright, ladies, we're moving out. Keep your wits about you. You may respawn if you die, but we HAVE to deal with this before the arcade opens tomorrow. You all know what'll happen if we DON'T." Some of the marines got nervous. One gulped. "Let's go."
	The squad set off for the tower. After a few minutes of walking, one of the marines paused. "Sergeant! Two unknowns approaching!" the marine informed, pointing to the group's left. "Orders?"
	Calhoun turned that way and leaned forward slightly, narrowing her eyes. "Hold your fire! Those are civilians."
	"Tamora!!" Felix greeted, smiling and waving. He then started to run toward her. Merin followed him closely.
	"W...what?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Calhoun snarled.
	Felix flinched before his eyes widened. "I....I just came to see you, is all...I thought we could have a nice, romantic dinn--"
	"YOU--" Calhoun slapped her palm against her forehead. "Look, I appreciate the thought, but you're in danger. And YOU!" Calhoun looked at Merin.
	"Hi! It's been a while...Tamora, was it?" Merin greeted.
	"That's SERGEANT CALHOUN to you!" Calhoun glared at Merin. "What the hell are you doing here, you lemon-scented pansy?!"
	"Oh, just, you know...being a tourist," Merin explained.
	Calhoun stared in disbelief. "You want a tour, head on over to Pac-Man, he's thorough. Don't waste my time."
	"Come on, honey. How can you be so rude to such a cute little girl?" Felix asked.
	"That's a little BOY," Calhoun pointed out. Felix's jaw dropped. A few of the marines dropped their guns, one of which fired off a round. Fortunately, no one was hit.
	"Ehehehe...sorry to disappoint." Merin stared at the ground, embarrassed.
	"No worries!" Felix assured. "Tomorrow, I'll take you over to Guilty Gear and introduce you to Bridget. You two'll be friends just like that!"
	"Fix-It, dear, I hate to be so blunt, but...kindly SHUT YOUR MOUTH and listen!" Calhoun ordered. Felix jumped, then turned to her and stood at attention. "Good. I'll give you the short version. The beacon isn't going off, so the Cybugs are still active. I had Markowski shut the door from the OUTSIDE, meaning no one in here is getting out until I give the signal that everything is okay. And...I'm a soldier first and a wife SECOND." Calhoun looked away from Felix. "I'm sorry, but you and the kid can't leave. We'll do our best to protect you, but that's all I can do. We're heading into the thick of it, but...neither of you two look capable of fighting, so you'll be safer with us than on your own."
	"Oh...it's that serious, huh..." Felix lowered his head, ashamed. "I'm sorry, I'm probably just going to get in the way, aren't I?"
	"Don't joke. You're a repairman, and we use a lot of tech," Calhoun told. "Chin up." Felix looked up at her and smiled. "As for you, kid...hmmm..."
	Merin tilted his head. "Is something on my face?"
	"Private Hartell!"
	A marine stepped forward. "Yes...?" He was quite short in stature, a full head shorter than even Calhoun, and was a lot less muscular than the other marines, although he still appeared to be in good physical shape.
	"Yes WHAT?"
	"Yes, MA'AM."
	"I've got an assignment for you, that might just fix that attitude problem of yours. See this little boy here?" Calhoun pointed at Merin.
	"Boy...yeah, SURE."
	"I'm placing him in your care. He's not QUITE as high value as Fix-It, since his death doesn't mean a game gets unplugged, but he's still a civilian."
	"So? Just send me onto the front lines. Without that god damned First Person Shooter in my way, I'll put all of those Cybugs in the dirt!"
	Calhoun punched Hartell, knocking him to the ground. His helmet fell off, revealing his face. He had short, light brown hair, and his left eye was blue. His right eye, however, glowed a bright green, like a Cybug's. It was, in fact, an implant, made from a Cybug eye. "Listen, you little puke! I know you've got a chip on your shoulder thanks to your eye. I've got a grudge against those bugs too. But we're soldiers! Our job isn't to kill. We kill in order to do our REAL job, which is to PROTECT! A soldier who doesn't care about protecting civilians is worthless!"
	Hartell glared at Calhoun and clenched his fist, his right eye glowing more brightly. Some of the other marines stepped back a little. "...Bah! Fine, I'll do it!"
	"That's a START. Listen, that kid your responsibility. Prioritize him over the rest of the squad. Fix-It, stay close to me," Calhoun instructed. Felix nodded.
	"Well, you heard the sergeant..." Hartell sighed, looking at Merin. "Let's just hang back, then. I'm not risking getting another lecture over you becoming bug food. Maybe I'll get to see a little action once we get inside." He picked up his helmet and put it back on.
	Merin looked up at Hartell and smiled. "Nice to be working with you!" He reached up, offering his hand. Hartell looked at it.
	"...I'll never get used to the whole four-digits thing," Hartell grumbled. He shooed Merin's hand away. The rest of the group started heading toward the tower again. Hartell followed, keeping Merin relatively close.

	The Cybug attacks got more frequent and large as the squad got closer to the tower. However, between their teamwork, Calhoun's leadership, and both the First Person Shooter's and Markowski's absence, they were able to continue without losing a single soldier. Hartell hadn't even gotten a chance to shoot yet, since he and Merin were further back.
	"So, why are you so short?" Merin asked Hartell out of the blue.
	"...The hell did you just say to me?"
	"Well, it's just...weird. Sergeant Calhoun is so tall, and the others are even taller! But you're like..."
	"I'm only 16. Someday, I'll be the tallest man in the squad!" Hartell assured. "But YOU? You're the size of a freakin' BEAN."
	"In Sugar Rush, I'm actually one of the tallest. Not by much, but..."
	"Sugar Rush? That's that baby go-kart game, isn't it?"
	"Don't underestimate go-karting! It gets pretty intense sometimes. Like my first race--"
	"Yeeaaahh, I don't give a damn."
	"You don't have to be so mean!"
	Hartell stopped. He turned and looked down at Merin, taking off his helmet. He held it in his left arm, while pointing at his right eye with his gun. "You see THIS?! I'm a damn freak show. No one in the squad looks me in the face, because I remind them of THOSE!" Hartell pointed at the Cybugs far off in the distance, circling the tower. "So yeah, I'm a bit of a DICK."
	"I don't think that's--"
	"Shut up. You don't know anything." Hartell put his helmet back on and continued onward. Merin pouted. Hartell looked forward, avoiding Merin.

	A swarm of Cybugs approached the squad from the air. "Heads up!" Calhoun warned. The Cybugs closed in fast, nearing melee range. The marines fired, reducing the enemy numbers by about half before they got into melee range. "Fix-It, stay close to me!" Two of the marines were hit by the Cybugs' claws, and were knocked down, bleeding. A Cybug landed on one of the downed marines, ready to feast, but Calhoun fired a shot right between its eyes, blowing its head apart in a rain of gore.
	One Cybug approached from behind. Merin spotted it, yelped, and hid behind Hartell.  "Only ONE?!" Hartell growled. He aimed his carbine at it and fired two bursts of lasers, damaging its wings and sending it crashing to the ground. It was still moving, however, but quite slowly. Hartell walked up to it, keeping his gun aimed at it. "Piece of trash." Hartell raised his right foot into the air and brought it down hard on the Cybug's head, dazing it.
	"Hey, you don't--" Merin flinched as Hartell slammed his foot onto the Cybug's head again. It screeched in pain.
	"You shut up," Hartell told Merin. "And YOU shut up!" Hartell aimed his gun at the Cybug's face, unleashing a blaze of blue flame from the carbine's lower barrel. The Cybug screeched even louder before suddenly going quiet, its body being burned to a crisp. Hartell kicked it in the face, breaking its head apart. "That was a little satisfying. God dammit, if this brat wasn't here, I'd be having even more fun with this little CRISIS..."

	The rest of the squad finished off the remaining Cybugs. A few marines had been wounded, badly. Fortunately, there had been no deaths. Calhoun sighed. "This was bound to happen sooner or later. I know it's tough with no breaks, but we have to keep going." Morale was low among the squad as they looked at the blood and Cybug corpses. "Don't worry about the wounded; we've got the best medic in the business." Calhoun looked at Felix and smiled.
	"Well, I'm not REALLY a medic, but..." Wielding his hammer, Felix struck one of the wounded marine's wounds, healing it instantly. Felix patted him on the shoulder and moved on to the next one.
	"Those old, unrealistic games are awfully convenient sometimes..." Calhoun commented with a smirk.
	After a minute had passed, Felix was done. "We're good to go, darling!"
	Calhoun coughed. She found it strange being addressed like that in the middle of an operation. "Right. Let's get back to it." Some of the marines groaned. "We're DOING THIS. But if it lifts your spirits at all, we can take a fifteen minute break once we've secured the entrance to the tower!" All of a sudden, chatter broke out among the squad, before they started cheering.
	Felix smiled. "Awww, you've gone soft!"
	Calhoun smacked him. "Not on YOU."
	"Ow...." Felix complained, before hitting himself with his hammer. "That's better!"
	"But there's something I don't get. There's been a lot of bugs, but there aren't that many coming out of the tower itself, especially the upper levels..." Calhoun wondered out loud.
	"And that's...not normal, I take it?" Felix asked.
	"As you go further up the tower, Cybugs get more and more numerous, and they often spill out as a result. But...I haven't seen a single one leave from the top floor yet, even though that's where the beacon controls are. I figured the beacon might have been tampered with by someone, someone who knows how the Cybugs work, but..." Calhoun suddenly had a look of worry. "...What if we're dealing with someone who can CONTROL them somehow...?"
	Felix looked worried as well. This didn't last long, however; he perked up and took Calhoun's hands in his own. "Don't worry! You're just letting the stress get to you. But you can't go doing that! You're in charge, right? If the boss starts giving in to pressure, so will everyone else."
	Calhoun took a deep breath. "Wow. You ought to have my job."
	"This squad doesn't need someone like me leading it. What it needs is a dynamite gal!"
	"Alright, that's enough out of you," Calhoun replied with a slight smile. She looked at the rest of the squad. "Back to it, grunts! We can celebrate once we actually have the entrance secured!"

	The group was just several meters away from the entrance, with no sign of more Cybugs. They walked past a few broken down vehicles. Many parts were missing from them, most notably their turrets.
	Felix looked at Calhoun. "Need me to go to work on those?"
	"Don't bother. We're almost inside, and there aren't any room for vehicles inside a building," Calhoun explained.
	"Oh! Right, that makes sense," Felix replied, scratching the back of his head.
	"But something still seems-" Calhoun paused as she heard some rattling from behind the group. The broken down vehicles were shaking. Suddenly, several Cybugs burst out from their interiors. A few of them had ranged weaponry mounted on their bodies. "SCATTER!"
	"Oh no!" Felix cried, diving for cover behind some rubble. One of the Cybugs fired a large energy blast where Calhoun had been standing. She rolled to the side, avoiding the worst case scenario, but her leg had been hit. She muttered a few curse words before firing at the Cybug that had hit her, destroying its weapon. "Don't worry, I'll--" Felix was about to break cover to help Calhoun, but ducked back behind it as another Cybug fired a spray of smaller energy blasts toward him. The Cybug that Calhoun had shot flew back and circled wide.
	"Don't worry about me, Fix-It!" Calhoun stood up, blood still running down her leg. "You can work your magic AFTER."
	The Cybugs had all taken to the air. The ranged ones bombarded the squad's location with various blast types. A few marines had already been killed; shortly after they collapsed, their bodies faded away.
	Hartell grabbed Merin with one arm. "What a pain." He jumped onto one of the destroyed vehicles and ducked inside one of the holes that the Cybugs had made. The interior was Cybug-free, save for a few eggs, which Hartell quickly destroyed with his pistol. He set Merin down on the driver's seat.
	Merin had a disgusted look on his face. "Eww. Bug guts all over the place..."
	"Better than your guts all over the place. You'll be safe in here for now. I'll be right above you." Hartell then went back outside and climbed onto the top of the vehicle, aiming his carbine at the Cybugs overhead.

	In Game Central Station, a small crowd had gathered outside Hero's Duty, curious as to what was going on. Markowski and Surge Protector explained to various characters the situation, and that the door was not to be opened against until Calhoun gave word that everything was okay.
	One large, imposing figure pushed through the crowd and stood in front of Markowski. It was Ralph. "Hey, you've gotta open that door!"
	"Can't. Sergeant's orders. If I disobey her..." Markowski started to tremble a little.
	"But my FRIENDS are in there!" Ralph yelled. "And if Felix gets killed, not only is HE gone, but his game will be too!"
	Surge Protector stood between the two. "Look here, Ralph. This lockdown is for the safety of the entire arcade. As much as a game getting unplugged would be horrible, if the entire arcade gets overrun...it's ALL over. Even Game Central Station wouldn't be a safe place anymore for those who lost their games."
	Ralph clenched his fist. "Fine, then. Locks aren't meant to be opened anyway..." He turned away and started to leave. "....They're meant to be BROKEN!" Ralph suddenly rushed at the door, but paused when Markowski and the other two marines standing guard aimed their guns at him.
	"Step off, Wreck-It," one of the marines told.
	"Ralph!"
	Ralph turned around to see Vanellope walking toward him with an angry look on her face. "Stay out of this, kid, it might get messy."
	Vanellope looked directly into Ralph's eyes. "Calm. Down."
	Ralph turned toward the marines again, who continued to aim at him. "AAAGGGHH!" Ralph raised his fists into the air, and slammed them into the ground, causing a tremor and two large dents. He glared at the trio of marines. Markowski stepped back a little. "...Forget it." Ralph turned around and walked past Vanellope, scowling. He found a secluded spot and sat down, keeping his eyes on the door to Hero's Duty.
	"I...I thought I was dead meat..." Markowski whimpered, dropping his gun.
	"Man up," one of the other marines told, smacking him on the shoulder.
	Vanellope walked over to Ralph and sat down next to him, leaning on him. "I know you're worried, but you gotta work on those temper tantrums."
	Ralph sighed. "Thanks, kid." He patted her gently on the head.

	In Hero's Duty, Calhoun's squad had managed to shoot down all of the Cybugs that had jumped out of the vehicles.
	"What're our losses?" Calhoun asked.
	"Three dead. Several wounded, although I suppose that's not worth mentioning since..." a marine told, looking over at Felix who was tending to his wounded squad-mates.
	Calhoun, having been treated first, was back in top condition. She jogged over to the tower's entrance, looked around a bit, then returned to the group. "Looks like we're clear. I promised a break, so let's cool our heels for a bit!" Calhoun sat down on the ground, leaning against some rubble. Some of the other marines sat down as well. Most of them were panting. A few removed their helmets.
	Hartell stomped on the vehicle Merin was hiding in. "Short stuff! The battle's over!" Hartell could hear some feint noises coming from inside, but Merin did not speak or come out. He readied his gun before ducking inside the vehicle. "You're DEAD, bug--" Hartell paused as he saw Merin curled up, crying. "...Kid? Look, the bugs are gone. I killed them all. Well, the others helped, too, but--"
	"I hate this world...I wanna go hooome...!" Merin whimpered. Hartell didn't know what to do. Merin looked up at Hartell as his eyes widened. He sniffled, but then smiled, tears still streaming down his cheeks. Merin reached out for him with a single hand. "Although I guess...there's some good things here!"
	Hartell went back the way he came, putting his gun away. "To hell with this," Hartell hissed, kicking a rock. He took off his helmet before looking at the tower's peak, focusing on the beacon. Felix, having finished his medical work, walked over to the vehicle that Merin was in, and took a look inside.
	"...Merin? Are you in here?"
	Merin sniffled. "F-Felix...?"
	Felix had a worried look on his face. He picked up Merin and brought him outside, walking over to where Calhoun was sitting. Felix sat down next to Calhoun, putting Merin down in front of them. Felix looked over at where Hartell stood, and then up at Calhoun. "Tamora, that boy over here..."
	Calhoun sighed. "Private Curtis Hartell. Poor kid got messed up bad when he was little, out exploring alone...got caught up in a Cybug attack. He was an orphan, and he got brought to a military hospital. One of the scientists who was involved in the Cybug experiments got the idea of creating Cybug-based implants for human use. Hartell was a guinea pig."
	Felix gasped. "That's--"
	Calhoun continued. "At that point, he ended up joining the marine corps. He was just barely able to pass the entrance examinations since he's not fully grown yet, but his skills have been growing faster and faster. Accuracy, speed...guts. When you start young, you pick things up more easily. Of course, he has authority issues, but..."
	Merin had stopped crying, and looked up at Calhoun. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
	"Help what?"
	"...Curtis. I want to make him smile." Merin curled up, pressing his face against his knees.
	Felix looked at Merin curiously. "Does Curtis..."
	"Hmm?" Merin tiled his head as he looked at Felix.
	"....Does he give you the honey glows, Merin?"
	"Honey glows? Those sound good! I'll have to ask Vanellope if there's any of them in Sugar Rush!" Merin exclaimed.
	Felix laughed. "No, no. Honey glows aren't a treat. Well...they sort of are, but they're not edible." He looked at Calhoun. "I get the honey glows whenever I look at this dynamite gal right here!"
	Calhoun smiled while looking away from him. "Don't start, Fix-It. It may be break time, but I still need to keep my head in the game."
	Merin blushed. "Honey glows...!"
	Several minutes passed. Calhoun looked around at her squad. Many of them were still exhausted. She looked at Felix. "You...DID treat them, right?"
	"I can fix damage. Stamina, though..." Felix sighed. "Can't do anything about that, I'm afraid."
	Merin jumped. "Oh! I have an idea!" He walked over to one of the tuckered out marines who was leaning up against a destroyed vehicle and looked up at him.
	"Hey there, cupcake..." the marine greeted, half asleep.
	"Take off your helmet, please?" Merin asked. The marine complied. "Lemons are good for staying awake!" Merin climbed the marine's torso armor, positioning the lemon on top of his head right in front of the marine's face. "Give it a few licks!"
	The marine licked the lemon. "Ugh, sour!"
	"More! Don't be a baby. You've all gotta be at your best!" Merin told. The marine sucked down some more lemon juice. "Hehe, that tickles..." Merin giggled. When the marine was done, he was wide awake.
	"That...actually worked? What the hell...?" the marine was dumbfounded. Some of the other marines looked over at Merin with intrigue.
	"Sergeant!" Merin called. "Can we extend the break a little longer? I can only re-energize one at time, so..."
	Calhoun looked at the first marine to get a taste of the lemon and noticed how awake he was. The marine put his helmet back on. "You know, I'll take you up on that request, kid." Calhoun looked at the rest of the squad. "FORM A LINE, MAGGOTS. It's ration time!"
	Felix looked at Merin as his lemon was inside another marine's mouth. "Does that lemon ever run out of juice?"
	Merin looked at Felix. "Nope!"
	"You could make a killing selling bottles of lemon juice!"
	"No way! I could produce infinite amounts, and that would lower the value of lemon juice. I don't want those poor lemon farmers in Sugar Rush to be out of a job," Merin replied.
	"Sugar Rush has farmers?" Felix asked.
	"I...guess? I mean, someone has to take care of the treats, right?"
	Ten minutes passed. All of the marines other than Hartell, including Calhoun, had gotten their fill of lemon juice. Merin walked up to Hartell. "Your turn!"
	Hartell looked at Merin in disgust. "That's screwed up. YOU'RE screwed up."
	Merin's cheeks puffed up as he glared at Hartell. "No, BUG GUTS EVERYWHERE is! Lemons are good for you!"
	"HARTELL!" Calhoun growled. "Stop talking in your sleep! Put that lemon in your mouth or I'll put this GRENADE in there instead!"
	Hartell groaned as he picked up Merin and started sucking on the lemon. Merin smiled, looking right at Hartell, blushing. Hartell closed his eyes. [It's just a lemon], Hartell thought. [This is just a lemon I'm sucking on, not some little...whatever this kid is.]
	"See? It's not so bad!" Merin exclaimed.
	Hartell put Merin down. "It's just a little sour. I've had worse." He looked over at Calhoun. "...Are we gonna GO yet?"
	"Looks like you're back in top form. Your attitude, at least!" Calhoun pointed out. "Break's over, grunts! Let's go put a boot in that tower!" The squad cheered in response.

	The door to the tower swung open as a marine kicked it from the outside. The rest of the squad followed him inside. Hartell closed the door behind them to ensure that the Cybugs couldn't surround them from both sides.
	"Playtime's over, kiddies," Calhoun told. "This is where you get your big boy pants."
	"I don't like pants," Merin commented. The squad went silent.
	Calhoun coughed. "Cut the chatter."
	"Sergeant, bugs!" a marine warned. A swarm of Cybugs flew down a corridor, heading for the marines.
	"Heh. This one's too easy..." Calhoun smiled as she stepped aside. "Minigunners, take these ones!"
	The squad's three minigun-wielding marines stepped forward. Their weapons' barrels spun for a second before beginning to fire a relentless storm of energy shots, filling the entire corridor. The Cybugs had nowhere to dodge, and went down without landing a single hit. The marines looked around a bit more, before one gave a thumbs up and they moved on ahead. The rest of the squad followed. As the lead minigunner walked into the corridor that the Cybugs had come from, a lone, large Cybug dropped down from the ceiling, landing on the marine and biting him. The marine screamed, but was silenced as the Cybug shoved one of its claws through his throat. The Cybug swallowed the dead marine's minigun whole, sprouting a minigun barrel on its forehead.
	"Oh, hell--!!" The squad scattered, trying to avoid the minigun shots. Two marines were hit and fell over, bleeding. The large Cybug did not leave the edge of the corridor, continuing to fire its minigun into the main entrance hall. The remaining squad members stuck to the sides of the room to avoid the shots.
	"These things are getting smarter..." Calhoun grumbled.
	"All it's doing is trapping ITSELF!" Hartell laughed. He moved closer to the side of the room that the corridor entrance was on. He readied his carbine. Aiming it diagonally upward toward the Cybug's line of vision, he fired a flamethrower blast. The Cybug was startled and its view was blocked by the flames, causing it to move back and stop firing. The second it did that, two other marines along with Calhoun herself sidestepped in front of it and opened fire, focusing on the minigun first before destroying the bug itself. The marine that had been attacked faded away.
	Calhoun sighed. "I know they respawn, but losing teammates is still..."
	"If you had me in the front, he wouldn't have died. Nothing gets the drop on ME," Hartell bragged. Calhoun grabbed him by the neck and went to punch him, but Felix grabbed her arm with both of his and held her back.
	"Calm down, Tamora!"
	"Hands off, Fix-It!"
	"No."
	Calhoun looked at Felix with a look of disgust. She let go of Hartell.
	"Is that..." Merin looked toward an entrance off at the other end of the corridor. "A cafeteria...?" He then took off, running toward it.
	"God dammit, kid!!" Hartell followed him.
	Felix let go of Calhoun. "You can't control attitude with attitude," Felix told. "He's gonna have to grow up at some point, but he won't change if his leader won't."
	"...Go tend to those wounded," Calhoun told.
	"Aye-aye, ma'am," Felix replied. He jogged over to the two marines who had been hit by the Cybug's minigun fire and took his hammer to their wounds.

	Merin poked his head into the entrance to the cafeteria. It was deserted; no people or Cybugs.
	"Kid, I swear to God, I will kneecap you if you do something like that again," Hartell growled, having caught up to him. The rest of the squad had gotten moving too, but were continuing down the main path.
	"Hartell! Catch up once you get that kid to listen!" Calhoun ordered before moving ahead. "I'm counting on you to handle whatever happens; we're not turning around!"
	"Where are you hiding, where are you hiding..." Merin mumbled. He rooted through various clutter, looking for something.
	"This is a waste of time, there's nothing important in here.
	"A-HA!" Merin exclaimed, holding up a few sugar packets from near a coffee machine.
	"...Sugar? You live in a game called SUGAR RUSH and you risked your life for some damned SUGAR?!" Hartell smacked his hand against the front of his helmet.
	Merin slipped the sugar packets into his socks. "I'm all set! Let's get going, Curtis!"
	"....How do you know my first name?"
	"Oh, the sergeant told me some stuff about you..."
	"...What kind of STUFF?!"
	"About little you, how you got attacked by bugs, and the scientist guy, and your eye--"
	Hartell aimed his carbine at Merin. "DON'T BRING THAT UP!!" He fired a few energy shots that flew past Merin's head and hit the wall. Merin trembled as he started to cry. Hartell's hands shook; he avoided looking at Merin. "Why can't I just kill you...?"
	"...Huh?"
	"Everything else I've ever run into that makes me this angry, I can just shoot it. I could kill you and make it look like a Cybug did it. The sergeant would be mad for a while, but she'd get over it. Yet when I point this gun at you..." Hartell looked at Merin again, aiming his gun. His hands started shaking again.
	Merin sniffled. "That's because you're not angry. You're sad."
	"...That's not true! Sadness is weakness, a soldier has to--"
	"Isn't lying to yourself also weakness?" Merin asked.
	"You...UGGHH!" Hartell threw his gun against the wall and kicked a table over.
	Merin started to walk toward Hartell, but stopped. He then walked over to a fridge that was in the room. Merin sighed. "Let's see if there's any--" Merin opened the fridge up, only to be ambushed by a small Cybug that had been hiding inside of it. "AAAHH!"
	"What the?!" Hartell was thrown off by the Cybug's sudden appearance. He had no time to dive for his carbine, so he drew his pistol and aimed. He couldn't fire, though ; the Cybug had grabbed onto Merin, and the two rolled over and over, hitting various things in the room. He couldn't fire without risking hitting Merin. "DAMN YOU!" He put the pistol away and lunged at the Cybug, grabbing it by its head and keeping its mandibles away from Merin. He pulled back even harder, locking eyes with the small Cybug. The Cybug let go of Merin and raised its claws, but Hartell grabbed a metal fork from a table and jammed it into one of the Cybug's eyes. It screeched in pain. Hartell then drew his combat knife and stabbed the Cybug over and over, cursing at it the entire time. When it stopped moving, he threw the body into the wall, pulled his pistol and fired a few shots into it. Hartell was panting. He stumbled backwards before sitting down on the floor, putting his pistol away once more. After taking off his helmet, he sighed and closed his eyes.
	Merin looked at Hartell. "That was....SO COOL! You stabbed it with a FORK!"
	Hartell's eyes opened. "...'Cool'?! You almost got killed because of your stupid detour and THAT'S all you have to say?" Hartell spat.
	"Oh...um...!!" Merin looked away, turning red.
	"Oh, whatever. I'm just gonna rest for a couple of minutes, then we can catch up," Hartell told. Merin walked over to him and sat on his lap, facing him.
	"...Lemon?" Merin asked with a smile.
	"No, no, once was enough."
	"If you don't keep your energy up, you won't be able to protect either of us, though."
	"...Fine." Hartell gave the lemon a few licks. "This is so messed up..."
	"No, it is NOT."
	"Not the lemon thing," Hartell explained. "I've been doing this Cybug-killing bit for a long while, faced all sorts of giant, mutated ones, and yet...it was that plain little one that scared me the most."
	"How come?" Merin asked, tilting his head.
	"I don't know. I've been killed a bunch of times in this game, so I thought I'd gotten used to death in general, but..." Hartell looked at Merin. "When I thought about the idea of you dying here, away from all of your friends, all alone..."
	"But I'm not away from all of my friends, and I'm not alone," Merin pointed out.
	"What are you talking about? This is Hero's Duty, and you're from Sugar Rush."
	"I'm not alone, because you're right here. And I'm not away from my friends, because I have a friend...right here." Merin gazed into Hartell's eyes.
	Hartell raised an eyebrow. "You...don't mean ME, do you?"
	"You better believe it!"
	"I can't believe you want to be friends with a guy who talked trash about you and shot at you."
	"There's lots of people who are nice underneath their mean, bad exterior. My first friend ever's best friend is like that."
	"That's a laugh. If someone like that exists, I'd like to meet them," Hartell commented with a smirk. "Let's go--"
	"No!" Merin hugged Hartell, pressing his cheek against Hartell's chest armor. "Just a few more minutes. I'm a tourist, and I'm enjoying this spot."
	"...Have it your way," Hartell sighed, looking up at the ceiling. He shut his eyes once more.

	In Game Central Station, the crowd that had previously gathered in front of Hero's Duty had dispersed. Word had spread all around of what was going on. Surge Protector got back to his usual duties. Markowski and the two other marines continued to stand guard in front of the door, deterring the occasional visitor. Ralph hadn't budged the entire time. Vanellope was pacing back and forth.
	"Ralph, do you maybe wanna--" Vanellope started to speak.
	"Whatever it is, go by yourself. I'm not moving from this spot until that door opens. And if those guards leave, I'm smashing it open and getting Felix and Merin out of there," Ralph grumbled.
	Vanellope sighed. "Okay, okay." She climbed onto Ralph's shoulder and leaned back against his head, closing her eyes. "I'm gonna have a nap. Wake me up if anything exciting happens."
	"I will," Ralph replied. He continued to stare at the door to Hero's Duty.

	Calhoun's group, rejoined by Merin and Hartell, proceeded up the floors. As a result of the mishap on the first floor, Calhoun played it safe and ensured everyone took their time proceeding. She allowed Hartell to take point from time to time. This new strategy allowed them to proceed up the tower with minimal losses. Calhoun noticed that as they proceeded up the floors, although the Cybugs were getting tougher and more aggressive, that their numbers were actually dwindling.
	"This is it," Calhoun told. "This is the room where the medal is obtained, where the beacon's manual controls are, and....where the Cybugs are the most heavily concentrated."
	"....In theory," Hartell added. Calhoun shot him a glare. "What? I KNOW you've noticed, Sergeant."
	"...Okay, you have a point. It might be a little dull in there, but we should count our blessings." Calhoun looked at the rest of the squad. "It's like I said, losing is not an option here. We're not fighting for the First Person Shooter, we're fighting for our game itself. Fix-It, is everyone in good condition?"
	"All good on that front, honey!" Felix confirmed. "How about stamina, Merin?"
	Merin gave a thumbs-up. "Everyone's been soured!"
	"It's all-or-nothing time. We screw up here, and who knows if we'll ever respawn. Since respawns only happen between rounds, and the beacon--" Calhoun looked down at the ground for a second, before raising her head again. "Get in there! GO GO GO!" Calhoun ordered, opening the door. The squad poured into the room, covering all directions. When Calhoun entered the room, she was stunned.
	"Who could have done this...?" Felix asked, looking from behind Calhoun. The room was absolutely littered with dead Cybugs. The room was heavily damaged as well, and even the hero's medal that would normally be floating in the center of the room had been jammed into a slot on a control console. The controls for the beacon were undamaged, but they were off in the far corner of the room on the opposite side.
	"HAHAHAHAHA!"
	"Who...?" Calhoun looked around. Her squad-mates aimed their weapons in various directions, proceeding slowly.
	A lone figure flew down from above. He was dressed in a white and blue space suit; his face was covered by his helmet. He wore a jetpack which he was using to fly, and he had two imposing blaster cannons mounted on his shoulders. The cannons, despite being shoulder-mounted, also had handles.
	"That's....Gunther!" Felix exclaimed.
	"Who?" Calhoun asked.
	"He's from that old top-down shooter, Jet Blast!" Felix told.
	Gunther laughed. "Fix-It Felix? Who'd have thought I'd see YOU of all people get to the top of this tower!"
	Calhoun aimed her gun at Gunther. "What are you doing here, and why--" Calhoun was cut off as Gunther fired a volley of laser blasts from his shoulder cannons. Calhoun rolled to the side.
	"Felix..." Gunther looked at Felix.
	"Y...yes?" Felix was a bit nervous at this point.
	"Your game is even older than mine, and yet it still works like a charm. So why did Jet Blast have to--" Gunther's hands twitched.
	"What's up with that wackjob?" Hartell asked Felix.
	Felix turned to Hartell. "About a week ago, his game got unplugged. The controls stopped responding. It was always a popular game, especially for the price. It played a lot like Galaga. I guess it just got worn out."
	"Huh."
	"It was quite sad. I saw him a few times at Tapper's, but he never really spoke to anyone. He was never much of a talker, since his game had no NPCs besides enemies. And they couldn't even speak, so..."
	Calhoun interrupted. "That's all very touching, but I'd like Mr. Gunther to explain what the hell that has to do with my game, and why I shouldn't just put him out of his misery."
	Gunther turned to Calhoun, remaining airborne. "Why I'm here? These Cybugs are JUST like the enemies from Jet Blast! Flying bugs that don't talk much. Aggressive. Simple-minded. Explode when you shoot them. So I thought to myself, 'Why don't I just turned the ENTIRE arcade into the new Jet Blast?'." Gunther started to laugh to himself. "I heard about what happened to Sugar Rush, how just ONE bug did all of that! So if I shut off that beacon, the Cybugs would eventually spill out into GCS and turn EVERYTHING into my plaything!"
	"YOU...." Calhoun growled. "You did something that dangerous, just to..." She looked around the room at the Cybug bodies. "This was all your work, wasn't it?"
	"It was, it was!" Gunther exclaimed. He laughed again. "It was a good warm-up."
	"I hate to break it to you, but the door to GCS is sealed from the outside," Hartell told. "The bugs CAN'T get out. Neither can you." Hartell aimed his carbine at Gunther. "The only place you're going....is hell." He fired a burst of shots.
	Gunther dodged them easily. "Oooohhhh...so my plan is a failure." He looked around the room at the marines, and then out the window at the Cybugs that swarmed around outside. "I suppose...I am going to hell. But I'm TAKING ALL OF YOU WITH ME!!" Gunther flew toward the squad, firing a flurry of shots. Three marines went down in no time at all, spilling blood on the floor and crying out in pain. Felix got his hammer ready to heal them, when Gunther made another pass, this time aiming at Felix. "You think I'm stupid?! I'm not letting you bring them back!" He fired, but Calhoun jumped and grabbed Felix, the two rolling over and over. Calhoun quickly got up and looked back at Gunther, who was dodging shots in mid-air that had been fired by the other squad members. He concentrated his fire at the marines that had gone down, until their bodies vanished. "You guys don't respawn until the round is over. And that's not happening without that beacon!"
	"Damn it all, you dirty--!" Calhoun growled. Felix got behind cover. Calhoun followed. "We need a plan. He's too fast, and I don't think he'll run out of ammo. Those blasted old games...." A few of the marines broke cover and fired at Gunther, but he dodged again and returned fire, taking them down. "STOP! You morons, we need a PLAN here!"
	"Do whatever you like!" Gunther mocked. "I'm not afraid to die! I died so many times, completely helpless in front of weak enemies! But here...even if I die, I'll go down fighting! A warrior's death!" He fired laser blasts indiscriminately, hitting the walls on the squad's side of the room. He then noticed Merin poking his head out from behind some machinery. "And what have we HERE...?" Gunther flew toward the group, firing more blasts in their general direction. Merin panicked and went to run, but Gunther scooped him up around the neck with one arm and flew to the center of the room, keeping his free hand on one of his blaster handles.
	"AAAHH! So high up..." Merin whimpered.
	"Felix making it up here was a surprise enough, but YOU? You're one of those Sugar Rush kids, aren't you?" Gunther laughed. "This is GREAT! I think I'll kill you next!"
	Hartell slammed his fist against the wall. "You piece of trash! You hurt him, and I'll do worse than kill you, I'll torture you until you--"
	"...'Him'? This is clearly a girl," Gunther told.
	Hartell sighed. "I was surprised too, but that's a boy."
	Gunther paused. "That's...Bridget all over again...!!" He looked at Merin. "Maybe I'll kill you LAST, then. I want to see you CRY a little more!" Little did Gunther know, Calhoun had taken the opportunity to sneak around to the opposite side of the room while he was distracted by Hartell and Merin. She opened fire from behind, hitting his jetpack and sending him spinning toward the ground. He dropped Merin, who was caught by Hartell. Gunther crashed into the floor near the windows and rolled onto his side, facing the windows.
	"Those top-down shooters..." Calhoun commented. "...No matter how good you get at them, you never get any practice at dealing with attacks from behind! Not to mention how frail their characters are."
	"BLAST!" Gunther cursed, slamming his fist into the floor. Hartell put Merin down and aimed at Gunther, as did the rest of the squad.
	"It's over," Calhoun told.
	"...No. It's not over. It's NEVER OVER!!" Gunther laughed like a madman before firing both of his shoulder cannons at the windows. The Cybugs from the outside were drawn to the noise and light. They flew inside, rushing at the remaining squad members. Hartell was about to fire at Gunther, but decided at the last minute to grab Merin instead and get behind cover with him. "YOU!" Gunther shouted at the largest Cybug. "GRANT ME MY WARRIOR'S DEATH!" He fired a few shots at the Cybug, getting its attention. It lunged at Gunther, pinning him with its claws and devouring him whole. The Cybug began to mutate.
	"Oh HELL no!" a marine cursed.
	"That's..." Calhoun had no time to react, as she had to focus on the Cybugs that were still attacking. Their numbers were dwindling thanks to the squad's efforts.
	In just several seconds, the large Cybug had finished mutating. It had a white and blue color scheme, and its wings each had a jetpack thruster underneath. It had sprouted shoulder cannons similar to Gunther's, but they lacked the handles and could be moved independently. The Cybug's head was now covered by Gunther's helmet, and it was unknown whether it was Gunther's face, the Cybug's, or a mix underneath it. The Gunther-Cybug mix, the Gunbug, stretched its limbs and took to the air. It fired its shoulder cannons all over the room, taking out not only several marines, but even all of the other Cybugs. Felix got behind cover and pulled Calhoun with him.
	Gunbug laughed in Gunther's voice. "I've never felt so much POWER!!" It continued to shoot all over the room. "The door to GCS...I bet I can BREAK IT DOWN!" Before it could fly away, though, Calhoun broke cover and fired at Gunbug. Gunbug's speed, even greater than Gunther's, allowed it to dodge easily. "HAHAHA! But I haven't forgotten about you!" It returned fire at Calhoun, who ducked back down.
	"I suppose...we need another plan..." Calhoun told Felix. Felix could tell that Calhoun was finally starting to get exhausted.
	Merin looked over at Gunbug. "Hey, Curtis..."
	"What?" Hartell looked at Merin for a second, before turning back to Gunbug.
	"I'm going to do something REALLY crazy. Just thought you should know that you just have to suck the sugar off of my lemon afterward and I'll be back to normal." Merin then dug the sugar packets out of his socks, opened them up and sprinkled them onto his lemon. His eyed widened and he got a little jittery. He then took off running, jumping all over the room and making a racket.
	"Oh, look who wants to die!" Gunbug aimed its cannons at Merin and fired, but Merin was long gone from the spot that it had aimed at by the time the shots connected. "What? I...missed? Impossible!" Gunbug continued to fire. Merin led Gunbug around the room, giggling to himself and occasionally babbling about sugar. "GET BACK HERE!!"
	"GO FOR THE WINGS!" Calhoun ordered, taking advantage of the distraction Merin created. She, Hartell, and the rest of the squad opened fire at Gunbug, hitting its wings and thrusters, knocking it out of the air. Merin continued to run around randomly. Gunbug landed on solid ground with its legs and fired at Calhoun's position. She ducked back behind her cover. Gunbug charged in that direction, slamming its head into the machinery that Calhoun was hiding behind, destroying it. Felix and Calhoun ran in opposite directions. Merin appeared in front of Gunbug again, jumping and clinging to the front of its helmet.
	"Oh no oh no oh no...!" Felix kept on running, looking for new cover.
	"NEXT! LEGS!" Calhoun shouted. Her squad obeyed, aiming for Gunbug's legs. The shots connected, many of them hitting the joints, and crippling them.
	"THIS WON'T STOP ME!!" Gunbug roared. It aimed its cannons up at the ceiling. "I'll bury us all! Last chapter of Hero's Duty!!"
	"NOW! CANNONS!" Calhoun aimed at Gunbug's cannons, as did the rest of the squad. They opened fire with everything they had until the cannons exploded. Gunbug's screech of pain sounded just as a normal Cybug's wound.
	"NOT YET!" Gunbug raised its arms, about to smash the floor and cause a collapse.
	"AAAARMS!" Calhoun's eyes narrowed as took arm at the clawed arms and fired, but Gunbug flailed, preventing a direct hit. Hartell got in closer and used his flamethrower to incinerate the arms, the wide blast being too much to avoid.
	"Not...yet...!" Gunbug rolled over, its head hitting the floor. Its body was still alive, but it could not move any of its limbs or fire any more shots.
	Merin ran toward Hartell. "SUGAAAARRRRR!!" Merin yelled. Hartell quickly removed his helmet, grabbed Merin, and licked the sugar off of the lemon. Merin calmed down.
	"You're the weirdest kid I've ever seen," Hartell commented before putting Merin down.
	"Ehehehe..." Merin scratched the back of his head.
	The squad closed in on Gunbug. "Hartell!" Calhoun yelled. Hartell looked at her. She motioned toward Gunbug. "Finish the job. I'm going to reactivate the beacon when you're done."
	Hartell nodded. He readied his carbine and walked toward Gunbug, facing it.
	"So you're the one, huh..." Gunbug muttered, laughing to himself. "Make it good. A death to remember."
	Hartell turned his head to the side and focused on a wall. While continuing to do so, he kicked the visor of Gunbug's helmet up, and pointed his carbine into the opening. He then held the trigger and blasted him with both laser and flame at the same time, at point-blank range. Since Hartell was right up close, no one else got to see Gunbug's face. By the time Hartell's gun was empty, nothing remained of Gunbug's head besides a burned skull full of holes. Its helmet fell to the floor as its head crumbled under the weight.
	"You didn't even look him in the eye before you killed him? Coward," one of the remaining marines commented.
	"Coward?! To hell with you. The guy wanted an honorable death, and I wanted to deny him that. Anyone who's enough of a scumbag to attack somone as sweet as him..." Hartell pointed at Merin. "...Doesn't have a shred of honor and doesn't DESERVE to have any."
	Calhoun stood in front of the beacon controls. "So this is it..."
	Felix walked up beside her. Calhoun looked at him. "Hmm? Need something?" Felix asked. Calhoun grabbed him, pulled him in close, and gave him a kiss on the lips. The rest of the marines watched intently. One whistled. "That's a reward. I'd still be crippled if you weren't here today."
	Felix blushed. "Those honey glows are back for round two...!"
	"Keep your head on straight," Calhoun replied with a smile. "Flip that switch, Fix-It. Fixing things is your job, after all."
	"Right away!" Felix flipped the beacon control switch. The beacon outside lit up, attracting Cybugs from all over. The marines who had died in battle respawned close to the entrance. Calhoun walked over to the spot where the medal had been jammed into a control console slot and grabbed it. She offered it to Hartell.
	"This might be the only time you get one of these in your entire life, you miserable little puke," Calhoun told.
	"I don't want that junk. Give it to Markowski," Hartell replied. Merin climbed up Hartell's back and hugged him around the neck. Hartell looked back at him "What do YOU want?"
	"You should visit my game now!" Merin exclaimed. "We can gather up the best treats and have a feast! And introduce you to my other friends!"
	"Dammit. I wanted to RELAX a bit, finally, but no, I'm still stuck babysitting..." Hartell grumbled as he retrieved his helmet. The group then headed back the way they came to meet up with the other marines at the entrance. Calhoun tossed the medal back onto its usual spot before leaving the room.

	Game Central Station's door to Hero's Duty was still locked. Ralph was getting more and more impatient. He nudged Vanellope awake. "Kid, c'mon, wake up."
	"...Huh...?" Vanellope groaned. "What time is it?"
	"I don't know! But help me out here. You distract the guards, and I'll rush the door!" Ralph suggested.
	A beep was heard from Markowski's communicator. He grabbed it and pressed a button. "Markowski--" came the voice of Calhoun, "--it's done! Get that door open on the double!"
	"YES!" Markowski cheered. "Guys, they did it!" Markowski ran and got Surge Protector's attention, who then came over to the door and unlocked it. It opened up. Markowski and his two cohorts headed back inside, while Calhoun, Felix, Merin, and Hartell came out.
	"Hey, it's Ralph and Vanellope!" Felix exclaimed. "I smell a family reunion!"
	"What kind of family is this?" Ralph laughed. "Glad to see you still in one piece though, pal. I was worried...about the game. I'd be even more of a hobo if you hadn't come back."
	"Oh, ha ha," Vanellope commented. "You know I'd let you move in if you ever wanted to."
	"Not my style," Ralph replied. "That castle is too fancy...and pink...for me."
	"You could always help me redecorate," Vanellope suggested. "With your fists! We could start from scratch!"
	"Oh, I'll help too!" Merin chimed. "Curtis, let's go visit Sugar Rush NOW!" He tugged at Hartell's hand.
	Hartell sighed. "Fine, whatever..." He then looked up at Ralph.
	"So, you've got a clingy Sugar Rush kid too, huh?" Ralph offered his hand to Hartell. Hartell shook it and smirked.
	"Those dents on the floor over there..." Hartell looked at Ralph's giant hands. "Was that YOU--"
	"Yup. I got mad. A little," Ralph explained. The two guys laughed together.
	Vanellope tugged on Ralph's hair. "Enough man talk, let's go!"
	"OWOWOW--" Ralph cringed as Vanellope kept pulling.
	"How about you t--" Merin turned toward Felix and Calhoun, but paused as he noticed the couple walking off in another direction, hand in hand.
	"Oh, I know what THEY'RE off to do..." Hartell commented. "Just let 'em be."
	"Really? What is it, what is it?" Merin asked, his eyes lighting up with interest.
	"I don't really want to say, especially not to you. You might get...ideas..." Hartell cringed. Merin climbed up onto Hartell's back.
	"Well, Vanellope, our steeds are ready...wanna head back to Sugar Rush?" Merin asked.
	"For sure! Although I'm still a little sore about missing the roster race..." Vanellope replied. The four of them then headed toward Sugar Rush's gate. "I'll win the next one."

- The End -