Collision Course [+ Additional Levels]

Level Four - The Chase

He hit a pedal, and the truck's wheels smoked as they suddenly moved. There was a loud screech, and the yellow glowing Denali leapt forward. Unbuckled, Hubert was almost thrown over the backseat, his torso hanging over the edge. Parker skidded around the stop sign at his end, turning left. Jessie instinctively reached for the handle above his window to brace himself.

"Wait! The right way is the quickest route back home!" Hubert exclaimed, but when they turned, Hubert could see why Parker didn't turn to the right. Another small glowing car, the same type as the red one, was speeding down that street. It was blue, and had INKY on the front license plate. "Oh." Hubert turned in the seat and sat down properly.

"I don't get it," Jessie said as Parker skidded the truck around another corner.

"Don't get what?" Parker asked half to him, half to the road, his eyes narrowed and focused.

"Why did you hurry like that to get away from Blinky? Isn't he the, well, the daydreamer? The loopy guy that wanders off?" As Jessie spoke, he strapped himself with his seat belt, putting the end in the buckle with a click.

Parker shook his head quickly, not once moving his gaze from the road as they tore down the street. "No, no. That's Clyde. He... well, half the time I don't even know what he's doing," he told him with a shrug. "Blinky, however... uh.... Let's just say that he's more determined to reach me than Clyde is," Parker answered finally.

"Blinky is more aggressive," Hubert pitched in from the back.

"Yes. That's the word."

The wheels screeched again, as they made another turn in the neighborhood. There was a thump and a curse in the backseat as Hubert fell. Another word balloon appeared. Either no one noticed, or no one cared to give it any attention, but no one commented on it.

"I told you to buckle your seat belt!" Parker shouted, instead.

"Fine, fine! I will!" Hubert growled back. He scrambled back onto the seat, but Parker turned the corner and he fell off again. Then Parker suddenly screeched the truck to a halt, slamming his foot on the brakes. Hubert swore again—making another balloon—as his head smacked up against the back of the driver's seat. The motor ran, rumbling as the vehicle waited.

"Pac?" Jessie asked, using Parker's nickname.

Parker stared down the road. "Wait... wait..." He readjusted his grip on the steering wheel. "Wait...."

Tense silence.

"Umm... wait for what?" Hubert asked him loudly, slowly getting back on the seat again.

A glowing pink mini Cooper came in through the left lane, and began down the street towards them. The word PINKY was on it's license.

"Now!" Parker shouted. He cranked the lever behind the wheel up to shift gears, and slammed his foot into the drive pedal. The truck drove backwards, and at the intersection, Parker cranked the lever again, back down past neutral, and drove forward into a different street.

In this process, Hubert fell over again. He wasn't able to get back up on the seat when they turned into another street either. He was beginning to get pale, beads of sweat rolling down his face. He looked like he was going to be sick. "Take it easy Pac... I'm not feeling—gah!" Hubert was tossed in the back of the truck again.

"What part of 'buckle your seat' do you not understand?!" Parker asked him loudly.

He made a sudden turn around in the street they were in because Blinky was heading towards them in that direction. Jessie hadn't said a word the whole time, having resorted to clutching his seat belt with a knuckle-white grip. He was just hoping that Pac didn't crash his only vehicle; it had taken him a while to get it. He enjoyed having a vehicle. And a working one was all the better. He liked being able to drive in something he owned. It made him happy. He liked being happy. It was great. The truck was great. His friend was great. And no crashing would be great too. Please don't crash.

Those thoughts went over and over in his head like a mantra. Suddenly, Hubert gasped and swore in the backseat. There was an orange flash that lit up the truck's interior, which immediately snapped him out of his thoughts.

Parker frowned, not moving his eyes to glance in the back. "What was that, Hubert?"

"Hubert?" Jessie called after a quiet moment, looking at the road in front of him, houses blurring past them. "Are you okay?"

There was no reply. Jessie frowned, and turned in the passenger seat to face Hubert.

Then he laughed.

"You know that you won't be able to buckle your seat belt, let alone fit in it very well if you change into that form, right?" He was grinning widely as he looked into the backseat.

A small, orange creature was in the backseat, the shape of a sphere. It had big round eyes, and nothing attached to it except two short legs with long thin feet, and a large tubular nose. The helpless creature bounced around in the backseat, managing to glare at Jessie. Despite it appeared to have no mouth or ears, it had heard him clearly, and responded back—and very loudly.

"@!#?@! Shut it, Jumpman! You know I @!#?@! change when I @!#?@! panic!" Hubert shouted angrily.

****

And suddenly Pinky frowned in her small car when she saw numerous word balloons filled with nonsensical signs and symbols pop up above the glowing yellow truck ahead of her.

****

Pac glanced in the mirror attached to the roof of the truck, and angled it to look in the backseat. When he saw Hubert's condition, he shook his head, and looked back at the road with a sigh. "Jessie, help him."

Jessie laughed, and turned, stretching his arms out. "Come on, little Q," he beckoned.

"I told you not to @!#?@! call me that!" Hubert snapped.

Miraculously though, he managed to hop into Jessie's outstretched arms. He smoothly caught him. In this form, Hubert was about the size of a large-ish beach ball, so it was easy. Jessie set his friend on his lap, just as Parker turned another corner.

"You're cute when you're small," Jessie observed, smiling down at Hubert.

Hubert stared icy daggers into him. "What. Did. I. Tell. You. About. 'Cute,'" he said, his round eyes narrowing in what seemed to be a scowl.

"Jumpman?" Parker said.

Jessie turned, recognizing his real name again. "Yeah, Pacman?" he asked. If Parker wasn't using their nicknames anymore, he didn't see why he should use them. Besides, it was just them now.

Pacman just sighed in the driver's seat. "Don't call QBert 'cute.' Okay? We all know what happened last time."

Jessie just laughed. "Sorry, couldn't help it."

"That's what they all say," QBert groaned under his breath. Then an orange, glowing, mini Cooper came in from the right lane, and Parker turned left. As he did so, at the intersection, the orange Cooper just turned to it's right, ignoring the Denali.

"Let me guess. That was Clyde?" Jessie asked Parker.

"The daydreamer?" QBert added.

Pac nodded.

"The fourth Ghost of Pac-Man."