After storming out of Tankman's recovery room, Bolt was greeted by the ringing of the emergency phone. Ever since he had been tasked with being the new commander of the Tankmen Police Department, the emergency phone has been ringing off the hook. Not that he really expected anything else, given the situation at hand. Giving a sigh, he picked up the phone and braced himself for whatever call might be waiting on the other end.
"This is the Tankmen Police Department – what's the emergency?"
God, saying those words still left a bitter taste in his mouth. He hated having to work for the very unit that he was once at war with. However, as Rick said, desperate times call for desperate measures including being forced to command John's unit. He might hate John's guts but at the end of the day, it was all about keeping the community as safe as possible from this crisis. He did his best to keep that in mind as he adjusted himself to his new duties.
"There's a hostile set of Corruptions just outside of Ritz Boulevard!!" the panicked female's voice sounded. "I thought there was an officer back there but maybe he lost...someone needs to stop them before they enter the town!"
"Ritz Boulevard...alright ma'am. Seek shelter now. I'll have a unit look into it right away."
"Hurry!! I don't think those guys are alone! This town is dangerous enough as it is!!"
Bolt sighed as he ended the call with yet another panicked citizen. The constant inflow of calls certainly didn't give him much time for rest, did they? Despite the circumstances and telling the woman he would, Bolt did not order an officer to investigate the situation. Sending someone out there against hostile Corruptions was definitely going to be a death sentence. No. He would investigate the situation via the cams first, something he had noticed that John had been failing to do. Perhaps if John just took a more careful approach on things from the start, so many of his men wouldn't be gone now. Bolt supposed it was up to him to attempt to set things in a better direction.
He heaved another tired sigh as he flung open the doors to Tankman's old office, the office that was now his. He was relieved that Tim wasn't in there. Ever since he came here, Bolt's assistant had hardly left his side, going on about how panicked he was about the crisis, how his family was corrupted and how he didn't think the rest of the unit stood a chance. Bolt had about enough of Tim's negativity and ordered him to work on an inventory count of the food and resources they still had to work with in this makeshift shelter of a HQ. Tim must have still been away doing that, which was a relief for Bolt. Now wasn't the time for more sob stories.
"Now to see just how bad this situation is..."
He braced himself as he settled into the office chair, logging into the computer and accessing the security cams. Bolt was glad that this specific call was about an area where there was a security cam stationed. It meant that he could investigate without carelessly sending men to the area. He could get an assessment of the situation and decide if a response was going to be worth the risk or not.
No sooner could he click on the screen leading to Ritz Boulevard did Bolt about drop the computer mouse. As the citizen had said, there was indeed a set of hostile Corruptions stationed just by the town's exit. They were pretty hard to miss as one of them was on a speaker that had magenta spatter all over it. The Corruption looked like Steve though it had horns and glowing red eyes – eyes that reminded him of the demon glow that the Dearests would give when they used their powers. No way was Steve a demon, right? This must just be some other soldier who looked like Steve, one who sat on a speaker much like he remembered how Steve sat on the tank whenever he was actually paying it attention and not leaving it somewhere for them to steal. It wasn't too much of a farfetched idea since many soldiers wore round goggles like Steve. With their uniforms, they all looked the same. However, there was no mistaking the identity of the second Corruption. The rifle on his back and the glowing magenta lights on his visor alone showed that it was Ted. The strings on his torso and the deep gaping wound on his back looked a bit disturbing to Bolt though. However, none of it was more disturbing than what he saw on the other side of them.
There, accompanied by his elite captain, stood Skittles...
"Glad you're finally seeing to reason, Boss!"
Elite Captain Joe's excited voice sounded as he and his commander walked down the dimly lit subway tracks leading away from Swappin' City and towards Newgrounds. Already there was such a vast contrast between the skies of the cities and they were only a few miles apart. There was hardly any light at all in Swappin thanks to most of the buildings having lost power and the sun was almost always blocked by the constant magenta hue in the air. On top of that, just breathing in the air in Swappin was enough to make one feel as if they were being smothered. Newgrounds was hardly any better but at least the sky was a little brighter and the air was just a bit easier to breathe. Skittles put a hand on his hip as he looked ahead.
"So, this city's about to fall too..."
Joe huffed in annoyance at the pessimism from Skittles, kicking a can across the ground before crossing his arms.
"Gee, thanks for the vote of positivity. At least Newgrounds isn't COMPLETELY lost like what happened to Swappin.' I mean, for the longest time you weren't wanting to get that. Kept thinking you could do something to save a city in which all the survivors are already dead or fled the place by now." Joe said. "At least things still seem to be running here. We'll have more a chance at doing something here than trying to survive in a fallen city."
"I suppose you're right. I really wasn't wanting to think that things were that bad in Swappin' but after I saw that entire biker gang, that one we've been chasing for years, get corrupted, I realized that town is as good as gone." Skittles sighed.
It hadn't been easy to admit that defeat. He and his fellow soldiers had been transferred to Swappin as police officers after it was deemed that all of Bolt's officers were simply following the crazed orders of their boss. Up until the point Bolt was cleared to go back on duty, Skittles had been appointed the commander. Why it wasn't Tim was a mystery to the young officer. He figured that it was because Tim could be, well, a bit weird at times to say the least. While the sudden promotion was a lot for him to take in, Skittles thought he was doing well. Crime in Swappin had gone down since he took lead of the police department. Citizens saw him as a hero, the one who kept their streets safer, made people more comfortable doing their daily errands, and just gave them a better quality of life. Honestly, that praise made Skittles feel good – gave him a sense of purpose. Something he had been lacking back in the military. He never understood what it was that he was fighting for back there. Not to mention how Bolt refused to let him help on anything actually cool. What was so wrong with helping torture a prisoner? Why did he always have to sit at his post all the time and pretend to shoot at that other sniper? Why did he always miss him? Well...except for that one time.
Skittles was supposed to be taken out of the force after the shot to his arm. However, he refused. He wasn't just going to sit on the sidelines due to an arm injury and even now when a disability might be what gets him corrupted, he refused to leave the force. Sure, he needed Joe to help him with some things but that didn't mean he was useless. When Bolt came back to resume command in Swappin, he saw just how much Skittles had helped do around the city. For once, Bolt was proud of him, saying positive things instead of nagging and insulting him.
Yet, now Swappin was a lost cause. Everyone there, dead, fled, or corrupted. All in the span of a few short months. There had been nothing he or Bolt could have done. The city's chances had been even less when Bolt was sent out to assist the Tankmen because they couldn't handle the situation here in Newgrounds. A few short months, those years of hard work gone. Gone with the wind. All because of one stupid, persistent parasite. Now, Skittles had to tell Bolt how he'd failed.
"Wonder what kind of stupid names he's gonna label us with this time?"
Skittles shook his head as he leaned against a fence, taking out a cigarette. They'd made enough distance from the Corruptions in Swappin. Now was as good a time as any for a smoke break.
"Eh. Probably none, to be honest. Bolt's changed since he went into the asylum for three years. He doesn't insult us nearly as much as he used to. He actually was proud of how Swappin looked when he came back." Joe shrugged, leaning against the fence. "It's just that it's gone now. This parasite's something else. I feel so useless!! Especially after what happened to Carl!!! He was just a rookie who changed sides. He didn't deserve that—"
"For the last time, enough about Carl! He shouldn't have even been in Swappin!" Skittles interrupted Joe. "He only ended up in Swappin because SOMEONE snuck him along!!"
"When are you gonna let that go?!" Joe snapped this time, emerald eyes glaring beneath his visor. "Carl wasn't happy with them! He used to be on our unit! It wasn't his fault he got assigned to the Tankmen when he re-enlisted!! What kind of friend just lets their friends be unhappy?!"
"And you did all of this without even so much as telling me." Skittles glared. "I only found out about it when you included him in your report!! And he'd been with you for months before that!"
"Because I knew you were gonna act like this about it!!" Joe yelled back before huffing. "But whatever. Guess I got my due consequences for it, didn't I? He's gone now!"
"Way I see it, yeah." Skittles said as he blew a cloud of smoke into the magenta tinted sky. "He would have been better off on all accounts staying where he was assigned. He may have been with us a few years back but that guy was rusty. He wasn't prepared for anything like this – the only skill he had going for him was being able to drive a tank! Of course, he would have gone out early."
"Well thank you so much for shooting my good mood in the foot!!" Joe threw his arms into the air as he walked away from his commander, kicking up dirt in frustration.
Eventually, Joe came to sit a bit away from Skittles, huffing as he rested his hands on his knees. He should have known better than to say anything about his old friend in front of Skittles. Sure, Joe made a wrong move by sneaking Carl into their unit but what else could he have done? Carl had been his friend since grade school. He wasn't just going to have him sit in a unit he wasn't happy if he could do something about it! Too bad if Skittles didn't like it! Him being in their unit had nothing to do with how he went out either. Joe knew that. Carl took a hit that Joe should have taken. It had been enough to infect him severely. He had no choice but to leave Carl behind that day – because the rookie's last request was to not hurt Joe. The only thing he could do to grant that was to run away. That would have happened regardless of whose side anyone was on. If Carl had stayed with the Tankmen it wouldn't have stopped the two from meeting up and speaking and the same situation would have happened. That Corruption had been after them for a while. Carl's fate was inevitable.
Joe wrinkled his nose as the smell of smoke became more pungent. He hated the smell of smoke – he was a strict nonsmoker for a reason. Unfortunately, Skittles was the exact opposite. It was why he used to be grateful Skittles had his own quarters to smoke in but now that they needed to travel together, he was stuck having to smell the horrible stuff. He sighed and laid his head back so it was propped against the abandoned building behind them. It used to be a welcome center but services were probably suspended thanks to the pandemic.
However, their moment of respite was short lived. Joe perked his head up as he heard footsteps in the distance, footsteps that were rapidly getting louder.
"Great. Don't tell me—"
Joe looked down the tracks they had taken to get here, expecting some of that biker gang to have followed them here. However, what he saw coming toward them was perhaps a lot worse...
The magenta tinge shining on their uniforms confirmed to the two soldiers that what was approaching was most definitely a Corruption. Skittles put an arm out to the side, stopping Joe from rushing over to get a closer look. How Skittles could shift from break mode to combat mode was always something Joe admired even while he was still mildly irritated with the temporary commander. As it approached, the two could easily tell that this Corruption was not like the traditional one. Four scythes came from the corrupt soldier's back, the top two being topped with heavy, sharp crystals and the bottom two less solid but just as sharp and noticeably bloodstained. His visor was broken on one side, showing an eerily glowing eye that had a crosshair symbol in it. His other eye was completely obscured by a pink X but Skittles could make out the faint silhouette of a sniper goggle beneath and knew immediately who this Corruption once was.
"Ted...."
The sniper who he used to play shoot at for years and the one whose stray bullet partially disabled him and escalated the war was now standing before them, mutated, and covered in the goop of corruption. Joe knew immediately what the creature was going to want and loaded his rifle to which Ted cocked back a pistol of his own as he stood within shooting range of the two.
Jumping straight to the point are we? Are you that eager to die?
A demonic, distorted voice having the undertones of Ted's voice spoke as the Corruption giggled, putting his free hand to his mouth which had a lit cigar in it. Seems he wasn't even taking this seriously as if he planned and expected to make quick work of the two in front of him. Skittles wasn't surprised. Ted was never one to put too much effort into a job. Everything was a joke to him. This whole war was a joke to him. Much like how Skittles felt back when he first enlisted. More so, was forced to enlist. Skittles had nowhere to go in the apocalypse and Bolt's army simply recruited him. Skittles only joined back then because he thought being in the military would be cool because he would get to do awesome things. Though, as he served, time and time again, Bolt refused to let him do anything other than man a sniping post. His only entertainment had been firing play shots at Ted. It was their little game. Now that game was a matter of life and death. The goopy scythes and tentacles protruding from Ted's back were bloodstained so badly that Skittles could smell the metallic scent. How many people had been skewered by those things? Skittles didn't even want to know.
"We're not eager to die, just eager for you to get out of our way!" Joe spoke before Skittles could get anything out. "So, move it or lose it, punk!"
Joe never liked Ted. How he was so careless day in and out infuriated the elite captain. Ted was probably older than most of the other Tankmen soldiers and all he did every day was smoke and drink at his post. Did he not realize there was a war going on? For as long as he was in the service, Ted probably could very well be mentoring all of the rookie soldiers but instead he just lazed around at his post. Bolt said there was a time that Ted wasn't that lazy and he was honestly an annoyance to deal with due to how quick he was to attack invaders in the base. That certainly went downhill didn't it? To Joe, if someone was just going to laze and take up space why even be in the force? Just seeing Ted every day doing nothing but fire missed shots at Skittles was infuriating.
How about you be the one who loses it instead?
Joe yelped in surprise as one of the scythes on the top of Ted's back swung straight at them. He barely had the time to sidestep and avoid getting downright skewered as Ted laughed manically.
Just so you know, I don't miss twice. That was just a warning swing anyway!
"Warning swing? Yeah, right!!"
Skittles glared though he didn't fire his weapon. He should have fired it. It wasn't like he had anything to lose by firing at Ted. Ted was why he got disabled in the first place, why he was advised to leave the force. He didn't owe the enemy sniper anything. Yet his hand refused to move to the trigger. Why was it so hard to fire one shot?
Suddenly, Skittles found himself staring back at Ted though he looked different. He no longer had the tentacles on his back and was no longer covered in black goop. He looked normal. Alive and well like he used to be. But he was just corrupted! Or...was Skittles's mind just playing tricks on him all along? He had been dealing with this apocalypse for about a year now in Swappin.' Every time he heard footsteps he expected it to be a Corruption that had found him. He readied himself to fight at every interaction. Maybe he had gone overboard this time. He probably needed to relax some.
"Ted? No...you were just—"
Skittles was in denial, not wanting to believe he had been seeing things earlier. Yet he still saw that Ted was normal and wearing a confused expression.
"I was just what? The war must have really messed you up, Skittles."
Skittles gripped his rifle tighter but still did not pull the trigger. Maybe what he saw earlier was his mind playing tricks on him. Ted was even speaking normally, the distortion he heard earlier being completely gone. He must really be losing it. How long had he and Joe been on the run for anyway? The lack of sleep might be getting to him. So then why was he second guessing things still? The uncertainty was driving him up a wall as his hands trembled. Nonetheless, he took a breath and spoke.
"Maybe you're right. I need to get a hold of myself..."
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"An Undead. I've seen those things before and they're nothing but bad news." Bolt sighed as he watched the cams. "So far, no one's even been able to make progress on one. All of them ended up killing everyone they were facing before anyone had a real chance. And this one is accompanied by a corrupted demon? Hate to be saying this but this might be Skittles' last stand..."
"Shouldn't we send units out there to help?" Carlos's voice questioned, making Bolt turn toward the rookie who yelped and backed off "Uh, sorry for butting in! You called me to help with the other locks still on some of John's files so..."
"It's fine. I did call you. I shouldn't have been talking to myself." Bolt said as he rubbed his head. He glared at the cam. "And no. I'm not sending out a unit. I'm not John. I know when the best option is to let things be."
Carlos set down his bag of tools he used for his hacking devices. Well, if one would call UPS sticks tools since that was all that was in the small bag he carried in. He glanced at the camera, seeing Joe looking at a corrupted Steve and the mutated version of Ted laughing at Skittles.
"But aren't they two of your close friends? Don't you think we should help them?"
"What part of this is an Undead we're talking about didn't you listen in to?" Bolt questioned. "Sending a unit out would just be adding more to their numbers. Skittles and Joe just have to handle this on their own, even though it's a losing battle."
"How can you be so sure? They're still alive! And it doesn't seem that either of them are infected either! No black goop anywhere!" Carlos objected as he pointed to the screen.
"Carlos, I've seen these guys before. Many times. No one's been able to even progress on them. They'll kill anyone they encounter. Those scythes on Ted aren't just for show." Bolt pointed out. "Besides, Ted was violent even without a parasite ruling his body. I bet there are still bloodstains on some of the old warzone buildings from the men he literally ripped apart during an infiltration mission. On top of that, Ted's got a demon by his side and corrupted demons are unpredictable themselves. I'd say Joe and Skittles have about a zero chance of winning."
"Well, I'm not counting them out until I see it myself." Carlos said as he glared at the cam.
"Whatever. If you want to watch this cam, then be my guest. I for one don't feel like seeing the one I saw as a son get killed on live cam." Bolt said as he stood up. "Besides, I need access to those files so the sooner you get the locks open, the better."
Bolt threw open the desk drawer, pulling out a pack of cigars and a lighter, putting them into his pocket.
"Hey, aren't those John's cigars?"
"I don't care! He sure doesn't need them!"
Bolt slammed the drawer closed before looking back at Carlos.
"Let me know once you've unlocked the files. I've got to get to reading them. I need to know all of what it is that I'm walking into, regardless of if John wants me to or not."
"Right. Will do."
Carlos nodded rapidly as he picked up his bag, getting set up at the computer whilst leaving the cam to continue its footage.
"I'm going out for a smoke. Checking on you later."
Those were Bolt's last words before he slammed the door, leaving Carlos alone with the locked computer files and a cam that was projecting doomsday for another set of victims. Or so Bolt wanted to claim. Sighing deeply, Carlos got to work with what he did best.
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"Skittles...snap out of it!!"
Joe called out to his captain for a third time as he glared in frustration. Once again there was no response. Ted flashed a sinister grin toward Joe as his tentacles twitched rapidly at his back before turning back to Skittles. The enemy sniper's eyes were completely clouded out as if he wasn't even here. As if he were in a completely different place entirely. His feet were entangled in magenta chains which led to a speaker where a familiar demonic presence sat, the end of the chains looped around his fingers as he grinned at Joe.
"He can't hear or see you anymore. Calling to him is pointless."
"You—you did something to him, didn't you?!" Joe snapped back at the demon.
He held his pistol tightly as he glanced into his magenta colored goggles piercing red demon magic shining through the one unobstructed eye. The corruption's demon tail and wings twitched as he simply kicked the speaker he was on top of casually.
"Consider it more so that I'm doing a friend a favor. I have to help Ted out, see? It makes up for what happened at the bar, doesn't it?"
It was at that moment that Joe came to the horrible realization he had been denying up until now. This wasn't just a random Corruption. It was someone he knew quite well. Someone he hadn't seen since the war days.
"Bar fight...wait...Steve? Is that you?"
He didn't want to believe it. He hadn't heard from Steve since the kidnapping situation Bolt orchestrated went bad. He had always been glad that the guy escaped Bolt's army and was with the Tankmen. He was rather frustrated with Bolt when he took it on himself to take back their spy who had chosen not to report back. With Bolt's insane rule back then, what spy would have wanted to report back? Had Joe been in Steve's shoes back then he would have done the same thing. Now Joe was looking at that same spy, corrupted and hijacked by broken demon magic.
"Nice to hear you still remember me. I was thinking that maybe you'd forgotten all about me after what became of the war."
"How would I forget the name of the spy that chose to betray us when he was assigned a mission? Bolt had spewn your name everywhere. None of us could forget it if we tried." Joe glared back.
"Well, you know me. I always do what I want. Even if everyone I've befriended hates me for it. Just like what I'm doing right now."
Joe looked up at the Corruption. Was this thing taunting him? The way it laughed, the way it held the chains keeping Skittles still, the way it refused to get up from that speaker to fight him, it all showed Joe that it wasn't even trying. Something about that infuriated Joe as he grit his teeth.
"Well how about you quit sitting on your high throne and come down and fight me!!"
"Why should a Dearest like me waste his time with some petty little soldier like you?"
Steve laughed in Joe's face as he held the chains in his hand, which was also holding a knife that he was being too lazy to use. All of that, however, went over Joe's head as what the Corruption said sunk in. Suddenly this was starting to make sense.
"Wait. So, you're telling me that you're a Dearest?" Joe began before shaking his head in disbelief. "No. That's just the parasite talking. There's no way you were a demon all this time. If you were, then the war would have ended long before it became what it did."
"What's the matter? Don't believe what the wings, horns and tail say? Or are you just finding it hard to believe that I never cared about the outcome of the war in the first place?"
"I know better!! I know you, Steve!! I knew you long before any of those Tankmen ever did!!" Joe yelled, clenching his fists.
Indeed, Joe's words were true as memories that he had locked away inside began flooding back to him. The times when Steve first enlisted into the military and was assigned to Bolt's faction. He was such a timid newbie and like all newbs, Bolt and the other elites harshly pushed Steve. Though Joe was an exception to that rule. He and Carl were always kind to Steve and respected the fact that he didn't always have the capacity to do certain tasks. Steve always appreciated their kindness. Hearing the things Steve was saying now completely contradicted that. They were close friends. Joe had been happy Steve left and got away from Bolt sure but he did miss those times. Now he was being told that it was a lie? That Steve was just some careless Dearest? Joe refused to believe it!
"Did you really know me, Joe? Did you or Carl know me? I was a rookie back then. A nineteen year old kid who didn't know the difference between a pistol and a BB gun. Seven years have passed since then. Old dusty memories mean nothing now. Maybe you need to start getting your head out of the past!"
Joe was gripping his fists so tight that his fingers stung against his gloves. He shook his head.
"I think you're the one who needs to get his head on straight, Steve!! Yeah, I know you defected. I know it's been seven years since you were in our army but I know better than to just think that it didn't mean anything! You only went to the Tankmen because Bolt was being a pain and honestly, I don't blame you! Almost nobody in that whole army wanted to put up with Bolt but at the same time, nobody wanted to face his bad side either, including me!"
Joe honestly hated himself for that. He should have tried to leave himself back then. Maybe if he had he wouldn't have had to sneak Carl around when he was able to re-enlist in the service. No. It was more than just dealing with Bolt being why he didn't change sides. Joe couldn't deal with the way Tankman ran a base either. It was a losing situation either way. Joe just found himself no longer caring about the details. He was an esteemed elite soldier and that was all that mattered. If true war ever presented itself, Joe always told himself that while he would be loyal to his army, he would solve things his own way.
"My head's on plenty straight, Joe. Did it ever occur to you that I didn't even care about Tank's base either? He was the one who decided to favor me. I never asked for it. The fact he favors someone who loses a tank is a poor war decision if I ever heard of one. But hey, it benefitted me in the end so who was I to complain?"
"You're not the only one who knows how to spy you know. I know full well you wouldn't say those things if he was really here." Joe glared, holding his rifle.
"When will you get it? I don't care about anyone! The only people I care about are my family and I can't wait until I get the orders to bring them to us!"
Joe glared as Steve gripped harder on the chains attached to Skittles. There was no reasoning with this thing, was there? Every argument Joe tried to make, every argument he knew his friend would have responded to, seemed to go down in flames and demonic laughter. Why was he bothering to reason with a parasite anyway? It wasn't like there was much probability that these things could be saved. Joe had been in Swappin during its whole descent too. Not a single person had been saved. Nothing but empty progress. Why did he even begin to think things would be different with Steve? There was no saving these things.
Which only left one other option.
"I don't know why I even bothered to reason with you. Steve's not there anymore. Nothing's there but a parasite that hijacked his mind." Joe said as he took a breath, closing his eyes as he prepared to fire his rifle.
"There's only one solution to this fight and that's to take you out myself!!"
"Oh, do you really think you can do it? You talk big but you never do anything significant. I wonder whose hair brain idea it was to consider you an elite captain?"
Again, Steve laughed at Joe, kicking the speaker as he brought a hand to his mouth. He even had the nerve to put his pinky out in the same way MM did, as if to further accent him being a Dearest. That was when the point of talking passed for Joe. There was no reasoning with this thing. The only thing he had left to do was load his rifle, cock back the trigger and take this thing out.
And so, in an unexpected flash of light, Joe fired two shots. As he gripped his rifle, he could see black goop making its way onto his hands. All he could do was hope and pray that his shots had made some sort of impact or else it might truly be their last stand out here.