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Post by Skyfire on Aug 15, 2010 15:45:07 GMT -5
Buzz needed a moment to try to get his heartbeat back under control before he answered. “Sixteen,” he pushed out. “It’s… complicated. Not in a bad way, just… complicated. Once we’ve gotten out of this mess, I’ll explain.”
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Post by cherryproductions on Aug 15, 2010 18:28:11 GMT -5
Woody laughed dryly. "What in life isn't complicated?" He coughed, spitting out some of the blood filling his mouth. Darn the inside of his cheek was cut wide open. Oh he was not going to have a fun time after this fell through.
"Sixteen? Dang, and I'm just starting to think of kids of my own. If I can have kids that is. We might not just make it out of here alive."
***
Mira was going to kill her! She told her to stay put and what does she do? She runs off, probably after Buzz who was probably have the bad guy. Grrr, why did she have to become a mother so soon? She wasn't supposed to have these feelings of dread and angry and worry for another few years! Jeez, let her go through pregnancy first before all this.
"Booster? XR? Can either of you read me? Answer or your niece won't live to see her 17th birthday!" ***
Cora was traveling down an alley way when she heard the voices. Hiding behind a brick wall that was still smoldering somewhat, she peered over and saw two men dragging random bodies across the dirt. Muffling a scream, she ducked deeper behind the wall.
"d--n, did SID ever do a number here."
"You're telling me. Let's just shut up and get the bodies out of here before the Bomb Squad shows up. Craters, who throws a lit cigarette at a building full of explosives?"
"A crazed maniac that loves death and destruction?"
"Touche."
Cora gulped. God, this SID guy sounded brutal. Maybe if she traveled back to Mira now she wouldn't be in so much trouble...
"Now who do we have here? A little doll perhaps?" Eyes wide Cora stared up at the ugliest face ever created.
SID slammed her against the wall before she even had a chance to bat an eyelash. His abnormally large hand was covering her mouth and most of her chin, dragging her against the wall, up up up, 'till she was at eye level with him.
There was a good foot and a half to leave her feet dangling from. Eyes wide with fear she felt him shake with laughter.
"More like a ragdoll really. So ragdoll, mind telling me who your owner is? Or better yet, why you traveled so far away from him? Hmm?"
She didn't move. She was to scared too. This man was worse than Zurg.
"Well, Cora, I guess your daddy will want to see his little girl safe and sound, right? Let's go meet him, shall we?"
Oh was she ever going to be screwed when her parents got out of this. She just knew it.
But right now all she could do was be dragged higher up in the air before her oxygen supplies lessened and soon darkness...
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Post by Skyfire on Aug 16, 2010 6:16:56 GMT -5
“We will,” Buzz said resolutely, wincing mentally at Woody’s injury. “We’ll make it out, and then you and I can go back to arguing about how many crooks we’re going to shoot.”
XR flashed onto Mira’s comm screen just in time to hear that last bit. “Wha? Mira, what’s going on there?!”
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Post by cherryproductions on Aug 16, 2010 10:31:17 GMT -5
"Now why would we do a thing like that? You're ok and all Lightyear, but after all this is done I'm going home to my wife and sleeping this day off. That is, if she don't kill me first."
*** "A lot," Mira deadpanned. "Listen, can you and Booster meet me here on Capital Planet? I'm outside the city mall on Watson Blvd. There's been a bombing and I can find Buzz and now Cora. Oohhh, that girl is dead!"
***
Cora wished she were dead. By her mother's hand respectfully. Why was she so thick headed when it came to things like these? Eh, maybe she got it from her father, he always seemed to rush out when trouble was afoot. Must be inherited.
When she woke up, blindfolded and strapped to a chair, her head was on fire. The pain was making her sick and this weird, throbbing pulsing through her wasn't helping matters. The dark helped, but not much.
She must have a concussion. Whatever that SID character did, he didn't do it lightly.
"Urg." She moaned.
"Coming to, ragdoll?" That was SID. It was the only rusty, but demented at the same time voice she ever heard in her life.
She opened her mouth to say something but it cracked before she couldn't get it out.
"Can't speak? That's a shame. I wanted to hear everything you wanted to say. Maybe squeezing your throat wasn't the best idea."
She growled, but even that came out rigid. "Wha-where am I?" She managed that but it came out as rusty as a tin can.
"Oh, so you can speak. Well, sweetheart, I can't give you full details to where you are, but I can tell you one thing. You're near family." She heard him walk away, chuckling him himself. He seemed to have stepped into the next room. She could still hear his voice, though slightly muffled.
"Lightyear! I have a surprise for you! Hey, would someone put the cowboy upright? Yeah, that's right. Better cowhide?" There was a muffled reply. "Good. As I was saying, Lightyear, I got something fer ya. Wanna see?"
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Post by Skyfire on Aug 16, 2010 16:34:21 GMT -5
Buzz let out a slightly choked laugh and shook his head. “I hear ya.”
XR grimaced. “I almost feel sorry for your kid. Okay, Booster and I were just hanging around the lounge—we’ll be down there in twenty-thirty minutes.”
Buzz exercised his right not to speak, settling for a look that could freeze the sun over.
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Post by cherryproductions on Aug 16, 2010 16:56:25 GMT -5
"Let me guess, Missy...uh Mira, she's your wife, ain't she?" Woody would never have thought that the blue skinned redhead would turn out to be this guys wife. But then again he never thought this guy as a normal family man to begin with either.
*** "Feel sorry for her all you want, but once I gain authority over her she's grounded till she's thirty!" And she meant it too. Once she made sure she was alright she was going to make sure Cora knew the exact meaning of the word Parent.
*** SID smirked. "You're learning. But I take that glare as a yes, hmm? Bring her in boys!"
Cora was picked up by someone who could put a heavyweight champion to shame. He slowly rolled her into the next room. Every inch she rolled she dreaded. Her father was in the next room and he was going to see her.
The troublesome brat that can't do anything right and would always stay that way.
"Look familiar?" She closed her eyes, not wanting to look at him. "Found he sneaking about in the alley way. Adorable, ain't she? Think I might add her to my collection."
She felt him grab her face and pull her toward him. She opened her eyes to stare into his black ones.
"Your Mama coming for ya? Hope she's as pretty as you ragdoll, I would love to have some fun with her."
Her eyes opening wide she did the only thing naturally possible in this situation. She kicked him. Always trust a reliable Villains to leave some part free.
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Post by Skyfire on Aug 17, 2010 6:45:59 GMT -5
Buzz just smiled. He wasn’t going to lie to Woody if he didn’t have to, but he didn’t want to explain the whole thing just yet, either. *** “Eeep, just don’t kill anybody till we get there,” XR pleaded, pulling Booster with him as he made a beeline for the launch bay. *** NO, Cora! Buzz watched in horrified shock as his daughter was pushed into the room. Cora what are you DOING here look at me please be okay sweetheart…
When SID mentioned Mira, though, that did it. Buzz lunged against his bonds, furious enough to kill, in that moment. And when Cora kicked SID, Buzz felt a fierce rush of pride—and his bonds starting to strain.
Oh, come on! Buzz wasn’t tall, but he was powerfully-built. He could do this. Just a little bit more…
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Post by cherryproductions on Aug 17, 2010 6:56:47 GMT -5
Woody raised a brow but didn't pry. If the silent treatment was what he wanted the silent treatment he was going to get.
*** Mira closed the comm without a second though, her mind reeling. Once she got a hold of both Buzz and Cora she was going to give them the biggest mouthful in the world.
Granted if she found them before anything major happened. Rather be safe than sorry she waited for Booster and XR, but a the same time got the feeling that maybe it would be too long of a wait...
*** SID reeled back, saying words that Cora would surely be sent to the deepest, darkest planet for.
Woody looked on, bemused and, like Buzz, tried to loosen his straps.
"You little....I'm gonna kill you." Pulling out a knife Cora's smirk fell. Way to go genius, you just made him angrier. "You know I don't care what Zurg says about your value, I'm gonna kill ya!"
He raised the knife and Cora held her breath, shutting her eyes.
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Post by Skyfire on Aug 17, 2010 7:11:38 GMT -5
SID never got the chance. Something big and powerful slammed into him, knocking him away from Cora.
“DON’T.”
Buzz’s eyes burned with all the fury of a blue-hot star.
“TOUCH.”
His voice was raw.
“MY.”
He wanted to wrap his hands around the scum’s throat, but even in his rage, he wasn’t an idiot. He gripped the knife and inexorably forced SID’s hand back.
“DAUGHTER.”
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Post by cherryproductions on Aug 17, 2010 7:34:25 GMT -5
SID was, to say the least, a bit surprised. He was pretty sure he tied those bonds on pretty tight. He was an expert knot tier ever since he was six.
But boy, threaten this man's family and you're just about dead.
Biting back a moan of pain, SID looked up at Lightyear with a spark in his eye.
"I haven't seen anger like this in years. It reminds me of my younger days. Tell me, Lightyear, did I push your button hard enough to set you off?"
"I would let go. I can still give the signal to anyone here to set off the detonator. Oh, did I forget to mention I filled this place with bombs and explosives too? Hehe, I just love going out with a bang Lightweight, and if you're not careful you might go off on one too."
He sneered at him, fully of cockiness and insanity. His eyes twinkled.
"Also, I took the liberty of putting one of my bombs under your daughter's chair. One false move and I'll personally set it off. Got it?"
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Post by Skyfire on Aug 19, 2010 6:23:56 GMT -5
“Yeah,” Buzz gritted out. But he didn’t let go. Instead, in a lightning-quick move, he struck a nerve on SID’s neck, instantly rendering him unconscious. “Can’t set it off if you’re not awake,” Buzz growled, pulling SID’s wrists into a lock behind his back with one hand and pressing a silent alarm on his wristwatch with the other. Then, with the same hand, he picked up the knife, dragging SID over to where Cora and Woody were bound and quickly slicing their bonds.
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Post by cherryproductions on Aug 19, 2010 8:37:10 GMT -5
Woody muttered a gruffed thanks, massages his wrists. They were red, blistering, and hurt like hell.
Once Bo saw these he was in for it big time. "Say Lightyear, mind putting his hands behind his back while I cuff him. After that I can get my team here...well, wherever here is and bag him."
Cora wasn't too uplifting when Buzz cut her bonds. She didn't dare look at him, for fear that all the anger and disappointment was going to meet her.
Just like always.
"Dad.... Look be bad at me all you want, lock me up till we find the cubes and send me home packing. Just know all I did was come out of worry, okay? I didn't meant to get captured by this twit."
"Hey!" SID yelled out. "Just remember ragdoll, you were sneaking on my grounds!"
He muttered something else under his breath, but it was too low for anyone to hear.
"You either speak up or keep quiet. And no funny business either, understand?" Woody growled, a small smile crawling onto his face.
After all these years of him being on the run his little squad bagged him. This was going to give him a raise for sure.
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Post by Skyfire on Aug 20, 2010 5:48:12 GMT -5
It took a lot of self-control for Buzz not to hurt SID further—that would be against every decent police law ever written. He deliberately turned away from the criminal to Cora. “Cora,” he sighed, “I’m mad—you can count on that. Mad more at him—” jerk of the head at SID—“than you, but…”
He shook his head. “Honey, as long as people like Woody and your mom are around, I’ll be okay.” He lifted her chin up so that she had to meet his eyes. “How do you think I felt when I saw you carried in here, hurt and tied-up? I felt sick. I’m supposed to protect you, not the other way around. Don’t you ever try to come after me like that again—at the very least, not without backup. What if you’d been seriously injured? What if you’d been killed or… or…” He faltered, unable to bring himself to say the word—the one that meant that Cora, as a woman, would have to carry a psychological scar for the rest of her life. “How do you think your mother and I would have handled that?”
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Post by cherryproductions on Aug 20, 2010 10:25:22 GMT -5
Cora shrugged. "I don't know, you and Mom were never really around much for me to understand." There was a small bit of bitterness in her tone, but not much to replace the sadness held up in her voice. "I've kinda raised myself into believing that I had to grow up and be hero like you. So far I've been failing miserably at that."
She looked up at her father, a uncharacteristic feature appearing on her face that showed years of loneliness and disappointment--and more of all, fear.
"I just want to do something in order to make you proud of me. Maybe then you would...." She shook her head. "Nevermind, what's done is done and all we have to do it wait for mom and Booster and XR to arrive."
*** "What took you guys so long?" Mira asked, impatient. She was standing around the street corner for a good forty minutes, impatiently pacing back and forth as she watched squad team after squad team move it.
If only she had her suit she'd join them. But even she wasn't stupid enough to go into enemy territory without being properly armed first.
Cora however, she knew that Cora had to be armed. She was too much like Buzz to not have a weapon on her at all times.
***
Woody sent the signal, ordering his unit to come in for the arrest of SID. No one could wipe that huge smirk off his face worth anything, other than overhearing the conversation Buzz and his daughter were having.
Something just didn't add up here. It was very possible that Buzz didn't, in fact, have a daughter. At least not yet. Cora--that's what they called her, so he guessed that was her name--had to be Lightyear's daughter. She had characteristics and personality just like his.
Something didn't add up indeed. "Haul him away boys. He's going to be locked up for a very long time considering the charges put against him."
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Post by Skyfire on Aug 21, 2010 5:50:31 GMT -5
Cora’s words might as well have been a vibroblade, stabbing into his heart and twisting it. Had he and Mira really failed their daughter so spectacularly?
“Cora,” Buzz breathed, taking her by the shoulders. “Cora…” He swallowed thickly. “Honey, you don’t need to do anything to make me proud of you. You don’t have to be a hero—craters, you don’t have to be anything. You. Are. My. Daughter. You’re my flesh and blood, and I love you like you wouldn’t believe. The same goes for your mom.”
He exhaled shakily. “I don’t know exactly what Mira and I were thinking and doing in your time loop, but I promise you that this time, we’ll do better. We will.”
***
“The cavalry has arrived!” XR announced breathlessly (which begged the question: how could a robot be breathless?). He and Booster jetted in, Booster bearing a spare suit for Mira.
“Mira, what’s going on?” Booster asked, concerned.
***
“Good,” Buzz said darkly, looking up from Cora. He would have been happier to get the death sentence on SID, but he could content himself with what would hopefully be a lifetime in jail.
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