Felixentric

Scene 38

"Quixotic?!"

Quixotic looked up and then down to Felix. "I don't have time for you!" But he looked... afraid? Angry in his confused and worriedly frustrated eyes, like Felix's arrival was the end of his world.

"You joined him?" Felix's voice dropped so much in pitch and volume that it didn't even make it up that first flight.

Hen's voice came from the third floor. "We needed an Art. With the newly refined substance, I decided to take another shot at getting Q-stick in the program."

"And what desire will keep him in line?"

"He wants a good story," Hen answered. "That's what he got from joining us. A plot twist." Hen was too clever. He always got what he wanted.

Felix stared at Hale. His eyes were blank, staring forward like a soldier in line for bootcamp.

Quixotic stood up, with shaking legs. The rest of the team were dolls, arms at their sides and not even glancing at him. He stumbled backward, grabbing the railing to stay standing.

"Now what?" Felix asked.

"I let you loose against my army, one-by-one."

"And why would I fight?"

"You wanted to repent yourself to the humans after screwing with their souls, didn't you? Now's the time to fight against us, for them."

"But it's-." He wanted to argue.

But Hen interjected, "Time's up." Hen gave a low and long whistle.

Poli took a step to the side and started to walk around Ray like a manikin. Then, she presumed normal human body movements, though her face was painted like a serial killer with an uprooted, cheeky grin and lowered brows. A clown maybe.

Q looked like he may pass out, but then he showed what Felix didn't have left. A motive. He had anger and beef with Hen left to settle. He had a reason to fight, and it came out strong. He screamed something Felix couldn't understand, probably a battle call. And then he grabbed Poli around her waist, tackling her to the ground.

Felix expected a look of surprise to cross Hen's face. Didn't he just say Quixotic was under his influence? Then, why would Q be attacking the other team members? But it seemed simple enough; Quixotic only wanted a story, meaning he would be doing the unexpected.

But why wasn't Hen upset by this, with his team going down in shreds?

Quixotic was beating Poli ruthlessly, without a second thought about the life inside her. The fire that erupted was larger than Felix had ever seen from him, in the papers, on the news, and in person. It was more than just his hands in flames. It was him, entirely.

And Poli, she shrieked.

It didn't last long. Before Felix could think anything of it or analyze the situation, she was a charred body. "No..." he took a step forward. "They're only being controlled! You know this! They're innocent! You have to save them too!"

Quixotic looked down at him and spit. He didn't understand. If the purple substance had done anything to him, it made him evil in a way - the same way it had done so to Janette and Ray. Like, Janette wanted magic, with the substance she would do it in a sick and twisted manner. And Ray wanted people's brains to be happier, but he would get their by wiping their memories with the villains. As for Quixotic, it seemed, he would only be able to tell a good story through violence.

Felix started in a race for the stairway up. Halfway there, it was Ray's turn. He moved from his freeze and Quixotic was already beating him in the gut. Felix wondered how Ray had gone on to beat Chemi for the position. He guessed Chemi was dead, then, but didn't think about it all that long; he didn't like to.