Chapter Thirty-Six: YOINK

“DARN IT Ruby!” Sir Lionheart
groaned as he dodged another Ruby Blast. Since discovering the Ruby
Suit, Daryl had managed to improve the skill set to include minor
explosive Ruby Blasts and Ruby Whips, which could be used to grab
victims while numbing them.

“Are you lot DONE yet?” Ruby turned
to face Mobster Marion and three of her goons, who were busy
destroying an old city memorial. Peter had warned the Knights of the
Last Order that the memorial would be a target, as Mayor Jones wanted
land for a shopping complex.

“We're taking our time to do things
properly!” Mobster Marion snapped as another statue fell.

“It's DESTRUCTION, how “properly”
can you do it?!” Ruby cried, throwing another Ruby Blast at Sir
Hyper, who had gotten close enough to try and strike. Sir Hyper
screamed as the Ruby Power charged up to his shoulder, numbing his
entire arm.

“Sir Hyper!” Sir Lionheart tried to
get to his fallen comrade, but it was too late. With a sickening
pop, Ruby easily twisted around Sir Hypers elbow.

“Not another one!” Sir Lionheart
groaned. That meant Sir Hyper, Sir Dark AND Lady Courage were out of
commission!

“You're next Chickenheart!” Ruby
grinned beneath the mask. Sir Lionheart quickly grabbed Sir Hyper
and the pair bolted from the memorial, unable to save it.

“Damn, damn, DAMN!” Sir Lionheart
groaned. He did his best to drag Sir Hyper away from the area as
quickly as he could – when Sir Dark had his ankle broken, Master
Revolver and twenty of the Death Valley Mobsters had chased them
around the city. Lady Luck was still fuming over the fact that her
beloved had been injured.

“I'm sorry Sammy.” Sir Lionheart
climbed down one of the broken storm drains which led to the tip.
Sir Hyper was following slowly, hissing with the pain in his elbow.

“I'll live.” Sir Hyper replied.
Now nineteen, the small boy had become an imposing man. He was still
pretty hyperactive and fun though, especially with children. He was
going through University himself now, hoping to become a teacher.
His theory was that while Belle could try and change minds that were
already set, he could help mould the minds that were still flexible.

“If only we had Chuckles and Giggles
again.” He sighed as the pair emerged from a large pipe that
emptied near the tip. Sir Lionheart shook his head.

“I know Charlie's still keen, but I
don't see Belle getting involved again.” The older man sighed.
“Let's get your arm fixed. Petunia's gonna kill us.”

“I think the jerk just dislocated my
elbow.” Sir Hyper looked at his arm. With a little wiggle and a
“pop”, the arm looked normal again, if not a little swollen.

“Oh thank goodness for that.”
Daniel pulled off his helmet. “A bit of ice on that and you'll be
good in a week. We're running out of combatants.”

“Surely TJ should be fine soon.”
Sam got back into his civilian attire.

“I'd still like for him to rest for
another week or so until he's 100% fit. He could get killed
otherwise.” Daniel replied.

“SAM! DAN!” A raspy female voice
called out. Lady Silent (or Not-So-Silent-Any-More as Sir Dark calls
her) ran towards them, jumping up and hugging her brother tightly.
“You guys were on the news, I saw your arm, what happened Sam?”

“It was dislocated, but I popped it
back in. Chill out Tammy, I'm fine.” Sam patted her head, wincing
at the pain that was still in his arm.

“It looks like it's sore.” Tammy
pointed out.

“Are you going to be annoying all the
way home?” Sam frowned at her as the trio headed towards Sams car.

“I'm your big sister.”

“By fifteen minutes!”

“Still your big sister.”

Daniel couldn't help but sit in the
back seat chuckling all the way home.

–

Belle walked out of the court room,
fuming. It seemed that the Death Valley Mobsters weren't the only
crooks in town, and she was beginning to regret all the times she
saved the Pleasantville First Bank as Giggles. The way they treated
people and they were allowed to get away with it?!

“Does this city THRIVE on corruption
or something?!” She wondered out aloud.

“It's an alternate way to do business
one might say.”

Belles head shot up to see Mr. Jones
smiling triumphantly at her.

“You're just like your father.” He
chuckled. “Neither you, nor him, nor the Knights of the Last Order
can change this city. It's the place where so called “trustworthy”
businesses come to make a dirty profit. That's what keeps us going.”

“Leave me alone.” Belle growled at
the Mayor, stalking off.

“You're fighting a losing battle, why
not join the winning team?” Mr. Jones called after her. Belle
ignored him and quickened her pace. What a SLIMEBALL!

She got into the slowly dying old
Elantra and headed home. One day she'd have to buy herself a new
car.

“Now I understand why you got so mad
Dad.” She said later, sitting at the table at home nursing a hot
chocolate. “It's infuriating, the way that people get away with
murder in this city.”

“You're fighting a long ingrained
state of mind Beauty.” Peter replied, standing at the sink and
peeling potatoes. “This was SO much easier when Bill lived here.”
He grumbled.

“It wasn't a total waste of a day
though.” Belle mentioned.

“Oh?” Peter looked up at her.

“You see, I stopped at the petrol
station to get more fuel and-,”

Belle was cut off by Lara returning
home with Madeleine and Oscar. Oscar burst into the house waving
around a red ribbon.

“I won the race! I won the race!”
He cried, running laps between Peter and Belle. “We had the sports
carnival today and I won the race!”

“Well done!” Peter lifted his
step-son up in a big bear hug.

“Have you finished those potatoes
yet?” Lara narrowed her eyes at Peter, who started peeling as if
his life depended on it (which it did).

“Hey little man!” Belle high-fived
Oscar before pulling him into her lap.

“I ran really, really, REALLY fast
Belle! Zoom!” Oscar started giving a detailed description of how he
completely obliterated his competition (to be honest, he only JUST
barely won, but we won't take his victory away from him).

“Did you see the Pleasantville
Memorial got flattened?” Lara said quietly to Peter.

Peter grimaced. Joe Masters had a
plaque there due to his actions against Johannas.

“I can't take much more of this.”
He threw down the last potato and the peeler, frustrated.

Belle looked at her father, and then
back at Oscar, who was still jumping around with excitement. She
tried not to think of the future the poor boy faced.

–

Crickets chirped loudly at the tip that
night, where again Charlie was having a late-night training session.
Although tonight wasn't so much training as it was stargazing. And
not so much stargazing as it was being lost in his own thoughts.

He'd seen the news that day. He'd seen
Sir Hyper get injured. He knew Sunny still had a cast on her arm and
that TJ had just gotten out of his moon-boot. Daniel was the only
combatant of the Knights of the Last Order left who could still
fight.

The bad guys were winning.

He sat up. It wasn't fair. He had to
do something! But without Belle and the Improbability Clause he was
little more than cannon fodder.

You managed to do okay before
Giggles came on the scene. Remember how you won the Lions Claw
Blade?

He shook the
thought off. That had been with the help of Sir Lionheart and Sir
Dark.

You should go and get your sword
back. It's not like you need Giggles
to help you.

He sighed. He
didn't even know where Mobster Marion was. Probably antagonising
some innocent civilian.

He got up and
stretched. Probably should go for a walk, lying down with the Arm
Scythes on usually ended in stiffness. He pulled on his masks and
headed back towards the city on the back of the midnight bus.

He savoured the bus
ride every night, because that's when he was Chuckles again, even if
he wasn't fighting crime. He jumped off the bus near the
Pleasantville Central Park and headed into the scented garden. It
was peaceful here, the lingering smell of the flowers hanging in the
air.

WAS peaceful.

“I
can't believe the NERVE of that man! Yelling at me as if I were one
of the grunts!” Chuckles heard the distinguishable voice of Mobster
Marion ranting. “I don't care what he lost, he has no right to
speak to his fiancé like that!”

“Had
a domestic with Revolver did you?” Chuckles jumped out from behind
a bush.

“Humph.
What do you care?” Mobster Marion growled.

“Hey,
we've all had relationship problems before. Maybe it will help to
talk about it?” Chuckles threw up his hands in defence. “You're
not breaking any laws right now so I'm not going to beat you up.”

“I
can change that!” Mobster Marion grinned, pulling out the Lions
Claw Blade and slicing down one of the bushes.

“HEY!
Not cool!” Chuckles cried.

“I'll
just take my frustrations out on you shall I?” Mobster Marion
laughed, swinging the Lions Claw Blade at Chuckles, who jumped back.

“I
was only trying to help!” Chuckles yelped indignantly. “No
wonder Revolver yells at you, you're a COW!”

“And
proud of it brat!” Mobster Marion moved to advance again, when a
gunshot rang out and a bullet landed just in front of her.

“The
HECK?!” Chuckles spun around, looking for the source of the bullet.
Nothing but silence and empty darkness surrounded him.

“Ooooh,
you're going to get it -ARGH!” Mobster Marion moved to attack
again, but was stopped by another bullet. In her fright, the Lions
Claw Blade fell to the ground.

Chuckles saw his
chance. He swung at Mobster Marion with one of the Arm Scythes,
forcing her back. She kicked at her sword, sending it towards one of
the bushes.

It would be a foot
race to see who would get there first, and Chuckles had a sharp
advantage. He swung at Mobster Marion again, forcing her backwards
before taking off towards the fallen Blade himself.

“Get
back here!” Unfortunately Mobster Marion still had speed on her
side. She went to make a grab at Chuckles when the third bullet
nicked her finger. She screamed in pain and fright as Chuckles
rolled into the bushes and took back his sword.

He bolted as fast
as he could back to the tip, making sure that Mobster Marion nor none
of her henchmen were following him.

“I
GOT MY SWORD BACK!”