Journey to the center of the cube

The 'Human attributes'

"Go back to base, I'll handle this. Make sure the election happens." General Hol ordered as the C3 bots nodded and went back inside the three vans. 

They circled around each other menacingly before finally deciding to attack, General Hol making the first move. The other C3 robots had already evacuated with the vans, leaving the general alone. 

The first punch glanced Lars's chin. He noticed too late that it was a feint, though, when the second punch doubled him over and expelled the last bit of choked air from his stomach.

It was a heck of a shot. Outside of having the wind knocked from him, which he always hated, Lars noticed a fair amount of pain in his stomach, which was something he wasn't used to. A hit to the face, yes, or even the kidney...but the gut shouldn't have been much more than discomfort, if that.

Fortunately, he was used to it all. An ex-CIA agent he was, the best of the best, he could kill an enemy in a second if he had to, but he was released from his duty because of his so called beast mode. 

"How'd you like that kid?" General Hol asked as Lars slowly stood back up and glared at him. 

"Is that the best you got?" Lars asked cockily as the general smirked. 

"I like your attitude kid. If you weren't what these bots were after, I would've hired you." General Hol said truthfully before coming in for another punch, but this time, Lars predicted it and sidestepped causing the general to almost lose his balance and fall. 

"You...little..." General Hol took a lurching step forward with each word. On the third, he swung: "Punk!"

The blow looked too sluggish. Lars knew the second the general launched it. The smirking ex-CIA ducked under it. Before General Hol could even register the dodge, however, a body shot was made, this one to his ribs as sent fresh ripples of pain through his torso. He didn't fall—he made absolutely sure he did not fall—but it was a lot closer than he'd have liked. In other fights he had, where he was more well-known, his reputation as General would have already taken a beating whether he won the fight or not.

"You're not used to fighting, are you general?" Lars intimidated as the general looked at him from a safe distance, Lars smirk before continuing on. 

"Sure you got these cool new upgrades from another planet but you were always the one who gave the orders."

"Shut up." The general snarled before he pushed himself to charge at Lars not really having a plan. Lars easily held him off and made a knee kick to the gut, hitting it's target once more while General Hol cursed under his breath before falling down to the ground. 

"Give up yet?" Lars asked calmly as he stood right in front of the fallen general who had one hand hidden under his chest, slowly but surely, the hidden hand had morphed into a taser which was stabbed into Lars ankles.

Lars screamed in pain as the taser was turned on bringing him to his feet in an instance causing his other siblings who had been watching them through the car gasped. 

"So you wanna play rough huh? Then so be it." General Hol smirked as he stumbled to regain his balance, now, the tables have turned.

"Not so tough now are you ex-CIA agent?" He continued as Lars' eyes widened in shock. 

"You know?" Lars asked carefully as he was still in pain.

"Know what? That you were released from your duty because you couldn't control your anger? Of course I knew, I'm the one who suggested for your release." General Hol answered truthfully as he changed the taser back into his metallic hand as Lars crouched down in pain. 

"It was you? You cost me my job? You cost me everything I lived for? It was all you?" Lars asked as he started pushing back his pain, his anger starting to leak out. 

"You praise me too much, of course not, I only suggested it. It was you who ratted yourself out. You have no one but yourself to blame. Causing such a huge flame, causing so many people to die and get injured just because you thought it was right and because you wanted to 'save' your best friend , who by the way, you also burned in that fire. you are worthless. To out of control, some would even say a 'failed experiment.'" General Hol explained calmly as he started to kick Lars' sides with his boot before deciding to stomp on his head with his right foot. 

From the car window, it looked as if General Hol was winning, until they heard a familiar growling from Lars. 

"Sh-" Quinn was caught off by Alva who covered his mouth and pointed to the two younger children who were awake, worried for their eldest brother.

"I was going to say schnitzel. Jeez woman." Quinn muttered as Eamon frantically looked towards Lars and the general in worry.

"He's going beast mode." 

As those words flew from his mouth, Lars' right hand grabbed a hold of the foot holding him down before he swung General Hol to the wall, causing the wall to crumble slightly at the immense contact.

"You're dead meat." 

The voice ringed out as Lars slowly stood up, any pain from before vanishing, leaving only pure anger. He soon sprung from his position to right in front of the general who looked at him with wide eyes before the general was thrown off of the wall he was currently on and towards the wall on the opposite of it. The General's metallic part of his body started to slowly repairing himself but not fast enough to fully block the next upcoming attack, if there was one.

"These 'human attributes' you speak of are a part of who we are. Without them we would be nothing but robots who follow and get controlled." 

Staggeringly, the general stood up and threw a haymaker that Lars ducked but didn't parry, then another that Lars swung under again—and responded in turn with an uppercut.

Click. The sound of the general's upper and lower rows of teeth making unplanned contact sickened him. Still, he kept his feet. He had to. Falling down was not an—

Even with those words still in his mind, he slowly fell, to his knees, then completely as Lars spit out any remaining blood he suffered from the attack and said:

"Never underestimate our 'human attributes'. Especially mine."

Before he too, fell down to the ground. 

Once the other siblings saw there was no longer a threat they quickly rushed to Lars cries of worries could be heard as they stood in front of his unmoving body, all of them making way for Rhys to check up on Lars. 

Carefully, Rhys moved his hands towards his older brother's chest before his hands started to glow green and the bruises Lars had started to disappear.

Once Rhys was finished he took his hands away from his brother's chest just in time for Lars' surprised scream as he woke up, frantically looking around to see all of his siblings looking worried before Lars set his eyes on Rhys. 

"Thanks Rhys." Lars thanked as he kissed Rhys' forehead before slowly standing up with the help of the twins.

"What do we do with the body?" Quinn asked curiously as he looked at the General with uncertainty. 

"Since he's made up of metal, we could bring him to the scrap junk." Lars suggested as they brought the unconscious body, putting him in the trunk of the car, but before they closed it, Eamon stealthily took the used to be beeping red light from his left side of the head, before crushing it and closing the trunk.

As the others got in and started driving back to the nearest trash collector.