Skylands Legends

10.2 The Calm Before

"The thingy is hooked up to another thingy, so that we just pull the lever to drop the thingies into the thingy." Pop Fizz elaborated. "Of course the third thingy is just the chemicals while the fourth thing is a tube. The first two thingies are, like, similar thingies, but not. Like a thingamabob versus a thingamajig. They both have 'thingama' in it, but one is named Bob while the other is a dancer. So it's not really that complicated. But it is EXTREMELY complicated at the same time. Just like..."

"Pop," Jet Vac interrupted. "Is it all set? That's all I want to know."

Pop Fizz's ears wilted a bit as he responded. "Yeah."

"Good. Dismissed." Jet Vac turned back to face the fountain.

Pop Fizz flattened his ears against his head and nodded before sulking back towards his building.

Bushwhack watched him leave before stepping up beside Jet Vac. "You want to talk about it?"

Jet Vac's eyes narrowed. "Talk about what?"

Bushwhack shrugged. "Last night."

"Why would I want to talk about last night?" Jet Vac said bitterly.

Bushwhack gave an exasperated sigh. "Don't play dumb Jet Vac, you're not good at it."

Jet Vac ground his beak and continued staring forward. He knew exactly what the hunter was hinting at, he just didn't want to talk about it. By denying it, maybe Bushwhack would let it lie.

"Alright," Bushwhack said as he noticed the stubborn look growing in Jet Vac's eyes. "I guess WE won't have a conversation, so I'm just going to speak out loud to myself within your hearing range."

Jet Vac shifted his feet, acting like he wasn't listening. He really didn't like where this was going.

"So I'm just going to come out and say it to begin, but I think Splat's right." Bushwhack said. "You've taken it upon yourself to be the one that avenges Eruptor and have gained a bit of a complex where you seem to think you're the only one who is trying. And I think that frustrates you. Am I right so far?"

Jet Vac kept silent.

"I thought so." Bushwhack remarked. "I'd also add that all of this frustration leads to angry outbursts, which you've had plenty of lately. Something that could stem from the fact that you haven't taken the time to properly grieve." Again he paused. "Wow Bushwhack, you nailed it again. You could be a therapist or something." Bushwhack said in a mock British accent.

He stopped and looked intently at Jet Vac. "They're all here to help. Just remember that."

Deep down, Jet Vac knew he was right. He just didn't feel like acknowledging that quite yet. Instead, he pulled out his vac gun and began adjusting its settings.

Before the trip to Fizzland he had Mags make some modifications to it. Specialized blades had been added so it could do more than just manipulate air. He'd come to the conclusion days ago that he wasn't going to capture the beast. No... he was going to kill it.

Whatever it took, he would kill it.

*****

Knight Light soared through the blue skies. He lifted a gloved hand to his mouth to stifle a yawn as he kept his wings working at an automatic pace. Below him the dark figure of the beast was soaring towards another island as he continued his ascent through the Skylands.

For two days now, he had been flying non stop ahead of the beast, tracking and reporting back to Bushwhack when possible. He was tired. Knight Light had made some long flights in his life, but nothing quite like this. Especially since he was actively flying instead of soaring. He'd never missed a bed so much in his life.