T.U.F.F. Mission X - Chapter 32

T.U.F.F. Mission X – Chapter 32

The spirit


After they got up to his room, they noticed how neat and tidy everything was. By the window was a desk with a computer on it. Dudley and the others approached it, noticing that there was a small, cute framed picture of Kitty winking on the left side of his desk.

“I had a feeling that he had a photo of her,” said Dudley, almost feeling amused by the similarities between Eric and Kitty, since she also has a photo of Eric in her cubical. “Things probably could have worked out for you two,” he thought. “You really didn’t have to mess it up so much, Eric. She really liked you.” Larry passed him the flash drive. “Alright,” he said out loud, “let’s see what this thing has to say.” As he was trying to get the flash drive to plug into the side of the computer, he found that he was having a difficult time plugging it in.

“Uh… Do you want me to do it?” asked Keswick.

“Heck no! I’ve got this!” replied Dudley. He was not getting the flash drive in, so he started to bang it on the side of the computer. “Hurry up, you piece of candy-looking junk!”

“Agent Puppy!” said Keswick in a panic. “Try not to bre-bre-bre-break it!”

“I know what I’m doing, Keswick,” he stated while he kept on smashing the flash drive on the side of the computer.

“Be careful!” said Larry in distress. “That’s my fifth favorite one!”

Finally, Dudley managed to inject it into the computer. “Finally! Oh my gosh, I thought I was gonna lose my MIND!!!” As the flash drive was plugged into the computer, it started to upload several files on the screen.

“Watch it end up being a bunch of strange fan art of agent Katswell!” said Snaptrap with a grin.

As the computer finished, a file titled Project: Hatred popped up. “This is it,” said Keswick. “Let me check it out, agent Puppy.”

“Go right ahead,” replied Dudley. “That’s a lot of words, and it’s probably super booooriiiing!”

Keswick looked at the file and what it said for several minutes, examining the info carefully. “…Huh,” he said quietly. “On the contrary, this info is rather fascinating. Uh, have you ever heard of King Mutt?”

“Yeah, I have. Me and Kitty actually went on a mission that took place at the museum that he’s preserved in. Um… His mummy, I mean.”

“Ah, yes…” said Snaptrap with a sigh. “That was the day I teamed up with Birdbrain and the Chameleon together for the first time… I hate those guys! But they do offer good company…”

“That was also when you randomly decided to leave the rest of your team behind whenever you teamed up with them,” mocked Larry.

“Yeah, what’s up with that anyways?” asked Francisco, sounding annoyed.

“You should be thanking me!” said Snaptrap in a grumpy mood. “I was giving you guys’ days off on those occasions!”

“That’s not the pah-pah-point!” yelled Keswick. “The point is that many years ago, in ancient Egypt, King Mutt discovered a few different spirits locked away in scepters, deep under what would eventually be his pyramids. He used these spirits on certain individuals, giving them enough power to destroy any enemies that opposed his rule. One of tha-tha-tha-these spirits was actually called Hatred, and she was used to possess people who had great anger within them. Back then, the hosts had full control of these spirits, and the hosts in turn would listen to King Mutt. However, due to some issues with Hatred’s hosts, King Mah-Mah-Mutt executed them and locked the spirit back into her scepter, never using that particular spirit again. Eric figures that King Mutt wasn’t able to control the high levels of hate and anger.”

“They had to be killed…?” asked Dudley with worry.

“Yes, but that was King Mutt’s twisted logic. Eric dis-cac-cah-cah-covered that after a few months, the spirit would be nimble enough to be removed from the host and be put back into the scepter. The only problem is…it has only been done successfully once, and it's not dah-dah-dah-documented on how it was done. Lost in history, I suppose… Any other attempts from the Egyptians were futile. Eric, however, believes that modern technology and proper funding can help make this process easier. It should be noted that he still has yet to test this out.”

“One moment, Keswick,” said Ollie. “Why would Eric want to use a spirit that had issues with the original master who controlled her hosts? Is that not somewhat risky for him to do that?”

“Eh, it sounds pretty dumb to me,” added Franciscp.

“In theory, it is,” replied Keswick, “but Eric used a special dah-dah-dah-device on Kitty, making sure that his goal for a safe Petropolis was imprinted into her mind. He also knew that she would be able to cha-cha-cha-channel her anger and frustration on the criminals that she has always fought against.” He rubbed his glasses, looking glum. “This also ensured him that she would hate agent Puppy, since much of her frustration was directed at him in particular." He looked up at Dudley. "I suh-suh-suh-suppose he wanted her to stop spending time with you, since he was jealous of your connection with her.”

“Yeah, that sounds about right…”

“However, Eric has one thing that King Mutt made sure to have: If the hoh-hoh-hoh-host has a strong relationship, bond, or love for someone, then the host cannot harm them with their enhanced powers. Their inner care for the person they are bonded with is a particular weakness that the spirit has. King Mah-Mah-Mutt would then force these loved ones to kill the host, since they couldn’t use their powers to stop them.”

“Jeez, this is some pretty dark stuff,” stated Snaptrap. “Are you sure you’re not just reading some bad fan fiction that he wrote?”

“Of course I know what I’m reh-reh-reh-reading,” he replied with determination. He looked back at the computer screen. “Apparently, Eric feels that this is prefect for him, since Kitty cares too much to ever want to harm him, in case anything ever went wrong.”

“Well, that’s it then…” said Dudley, lowering his shoulders. “Eric won. He got Kitty working with him, and she has to listen to what he says, since she can’t harm him…” Everyone looked at Dudley.

“Agent Puppy…” said Keswick quietly. “Don’t you think you’d have a chance to stop her? You are her partner, after all.”

“She hates me… She hates me way too much, and Eric made sure she would. Any guilt she felt for me was just a side effect. She told me so herself…” He lowered his head. “Say we could somehow stop her, what could we do to remove the spirit? Even Eric isn’t one hundred percent sure it can work, and we don’t know how it worked the first and only time.” Dudley started to leave the room and began walking down the stairs. “Sorry guys, but I’ve pretty much lost hope… This is something that T.U.F.F. can’t do anything to help…”

Dudley left the room, and while Keswick wanted to say something to stop him from leaving, he couldn’t think of anything. Snaptrap looked down at the ground while lowering his eyebrows, feeling something in his pocket. He appeared to be in a deep thought.

***

Dudley was sitting out on the balcony of the resort, resting his arms on a table. “It’s no use…” he thought. “Right when I thought she could be saved… I find out that I in specific can’t do anything about it… If Eric ever did decide to change his mind and attempt to remove the spirit, that wouldn’t be for quite some time, and by then, the damage would already be done. We would have already failed our job…”

As Dudley was pondering his thoughts and concerns, Ollie approached him, folding his arms behind his back. “It is quite a rare sight to see you like this, agent Puppy,” he said with a frown.

“Actually…” replied Dudley, “I’ve been feeling like this a lot lately… What can we possibly do to stop a situation like this…?”

“You appear to have lost faith in your partner…”

“Only because she lost faith in me. I feel like I don’t even know her anymore… If I try to do anything to stop her, she would kill me without hesitation.”

“You said that she spared your life when she first transformed, saying that you were indeed there for her whenever she needed…” Ollie smiled slightly. “Threats aside, that doesn’t sound like someone who truly hates you.”

“Eh… She probably just remembered some of the good times we had. Overall, she can’t stand me. I…can honestly see why.”

Ollie thought for a moment, and then put his arms to his sides. “Agent Puppy… You’re aware of how much our boss despises you.” Dudley looked up at him in slight surprise. “He can’t stand losing against you, and in many ways, he envies you.”

“He envies me? How so?”

“He realizes what a great life you have. He can't figure out how so many things work out in your favor. See, he can’t live a normal life because he has been far too tainted by evil and mischief, not caring enough about those around him to ever attempt living an honest and innocent life. You, however, have that in your very own life. Much of that comes from the ones you care for, such as your friends and family. Because of this, he detests you, since he knows that he can never be truly happy, unlike you.”

“I…never thought of it like that. I always thought he hated me for other reasons, like how me and Kitty always stopped his plans.”

“Well, he does, but those are some of the main reasons.” Ollie looked him in the eyes. “How do you think Snaptrap felt when he thought you were dead?”

“Oh, uh… Happy; he was really ticked off when he realized that I lived from Eric’s attack.”

“You would think…” Dudley raised an eyebrow. “It seemed like that for the first while, but once we infiltrated this resort, I found Snaptrap standing out at this balcony, looking a bit glum. When we asked him what was wrong, he told us that it was nothing. When we started talking about how you wouldn’t be around to foil our plans anymore, he quickly changed the subject, appearing to be rather agitated.”

“I’m not sure I follow where you’re going with this.”

“Well, to put it plainly, our boss appeared to be rather depressed over your apparent death. While it is true that he celebrated your demise at first, he then became quiet and unusually serious. Personally, deep down… I think he missed you.”

Dudley couldn’t believe what Ollie was saying. “Wait. Are you telling me…that Snaptrap actually missed me? But…doesn’t he hate me?”

“He does indeed, but part of him has always liked you and agent Katswell. He meant what he said when he thought that you two were ‘cool’ to hang out with. After working with you for the past while, he seems to have grown just a little fond of you and your company.”

If it was any other villain telling him this, Dudley wouldn’t have believed them. Ollie, however, was someone that Dudley felt was honest and respectful, so he listened to him.

“That’s kinda unexpected,” said Dudley. “To believe that Snaptrap of all people actually cares about me in a sense.”

“Now, I would not let that go to your head,” said Ollie with a laugh. “Once all of this is over, he will most likely try to eliminate you again; with our assistance, of course.”

Dudley rolled his eyes. “Of course.”

“My point is that our boss has hated and envied you for the longest time. Despite that, he still cares, even if it is deep down. Agent Katswell, on the other hand, has only hated you for the past while. The way I see it… if Snaptrap of all people can feel sympathy for you, then that should be no problem for her. Even if she has some subconscious feelings that are negative towards you, that doesn’t change the fact that you two were always there for each other. This opportunity should be no different.”

“…Heh.” Dudley made a small smile. “I’ve been lectured by villains before, but never like this.” Ollie smiled in response. “Still, I get what you’re saying. I guess I’m just a little worried about what could happen, since I don’t know for sure if she still cares for me.”

“It’s up to you to decide, so if you want a quick ride back to Petropolis, one of our D.O.O.M. jets could get you there rather quickly. I would say it is at least worth a shot.” Ollie then nodded to him, and as he was leaving, he turned back around. “Oh yes, I almost forgot. I believe that agent Katswell lost this from her purse when you two were escaping the plane.” He passed Dudley a photograph. “She mentioned something about losing a picture that time. Anyways, that’s enough from me. I do not usually talk this much, but I suppose I have been in a rather chatty mood lately. Anyways, I’ll be with the others.” Once again, Ollie politely nodded; this time while tipping his hat. He then went back into the resort, leaving Dudley with the photograph.

“This…” said Dudley as he stared intensely at the photograph. “This is the picture that I lost on her that time? But…she told me that it was a picture of Eric…” In much surprise to Dudley’s eyes, the picture that he lost wasn’t an image of Eric at all. It was actually a photograph of Dudley and Kitty with their arms around each other, smiling and having a good time on a boat that T.U.F.F. arranged for her birthday last year.



They both had face paint on their faces from when they painted on each other’s faces for fun. The photograph was a selfie that Kitty took of the both of them. An important fact to understand is that ever since he met her, Dudley has managed to make Kitty’s birthdays fun and enjoyable (albeit, the first attempt was more so a mixed bag). Kitty has been known for having terrible birthdays for most of her life, but thanks to him, she has been having (almost) perfect one’s ever since.

“It…it was never a picture of him… At the time, she must have wanted to get back at me, since we were arguing over who gets to make the plans for the missions, but...” He blinked as he observed it. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off of it. “I lost a picture of us, and all this time, I thought it was a picture of Eric. It bugged me so much to know what it was… Now I know that she actually kept this image with her, wherever she went… She loved that birthday more than any other one and she really enjoyed her time with me…” He then smiled, feeling very encouraged. “She always thought of us! No matter what, she always did! Even if she didn’t always seem like it, she really did care…! Not once did she envy me before the possession. That ‘side effect’ stuff she mentioned is complete bogus! That’s why she was so sad to see me lose faith in her before I left that time… She trusted me more than anyone else…because we’re such great friends…!” He quickly got up from his seat, feeling a little bit of an adrenaline rush. “That’s it! I’m heading back to Petropolis! I don’t know if this will work… but I have to try!”

***

Sometime later in Petropolis, the armored Eric and dark influenced Kitty were entering the city, walking down one of the various streets.

“Well now…” said Eric. “We have finally arrived at our destination, Guilt… Now Petropolis will be cleansed of all evil and injustice, purifying this beautiful city once and for all.”

“Cleanse all evil and injustice…” said Kitty quietly. “…Once and for all… Of course…”