One Last Chance ch. 8

Chapter 8

    “He literally blacked out?! Is he okay!?” said Knuckles.

    “Yeah. Jean’s okay. We’re checking him out of the hospital right now,” said Kate. “We’ll be back later.”

    “Okay. Thank goodness that Jean’s okay. Anyway, when you get back, I’ll cook dinner. I’ll update you on what happened when the timing’s right,” said Knuckles.

    “Alright Knux. I’ll see you later. Bye. I love you,” said Kate.

    “Love you to. Bye Kate,” said Knuckles.

    Kate pulled her phone away from her ear and hit the button to end the call. She let out a sigh of relief and looked over at Jean. Her friend was still resting in bed, and he was nervous because he wasn’t used to the doctor checking on him. They wanted to check on Jean one more time before allowing him to leave.

    “He’s good to go. You can take him home,” said the doctor.

    “Thank you, doctor,” said Kate.

    The doctor exited the room, leaving Jean and Kate alone. She walked over to him and helped him stand up.

    “I’m okay. I can walk,” said Jean.

    “Come on. The others are waiting for us. And I think we should go back to the tree house. It’s been a long day for everyone,” said Kate.

    She gently grabbed his hand to walk him out. Jean felt a little nervous, but he didn’t say anything, because he ended up lost in his thoughts.

    ‘I blacked out because of that dream I had… that man was back there again… I don’t understand why I’m having these dreams when I’m not there. And since I’m not there, they couldn’t have been flashbacks of my past…’ he thought.

    Jean snapped out of his train of thought when he saw Tacey, Gordon, Hadrian, Mevia, and Kari waiting for them in the waiting room. The group gathered together again and exited the hospital together.

    “You feeling alright, Jean?” asked Hadrian.

    “Yeah… I’m okay…” said Jean, showing no emotion.

    “We best to get you back to the tree house. Tacey, Gordon, since you guys were coming over, why not come with us?” said Kate.

    “I think it’s the best move. We need to help Gordon regain his memories to,” said Tacey.

    “This world is so unfamiliar to me, but I trust Tacey. I’ll go with her to this tree house of yours,” said Gordon.

    “Hadrian, Mevia, and Kari, you coming to?” asked Kate.

    “We’ll probably stop by the tree house another day. We have to get back home. We have other things to get done,” said Hadrian.

    “Yeah. But if we hear any word on someone looking for Gordon or Jean, we’ll send you an update,” said Mevia.

    “Alright. We’ll see you guys around,” said Kate.

    After returning to Hadrian and Mevia’s house, the four friends said goodbye to the two Old Builders and the Luxio. They entered the warp pipe and headed back down the warp pipe tunnel that led to the tree house.

    “Tacey, Gordon, you guys are welcome to stay at the tree house if you want,” said Kate.

    “You sure? I should get Gordon back to the Rogues, and... I need to go home…” said Tacey. When she brought up home, she formed a glum look.

    “I know Jet wouldn’t mind, and besides, in terms of home, you know what I can do to help out with that end,” said Kate.

    Tacey was quiet for a second. She sighed and then said, “Okay. I’ll come to the treehouse.”

    Kate nodded her head.

    The four continued down the tunnel. Kate and Jean walked ahead of Tacey and Gordon. Gordon gave Tacey a concerned look.

    “Is everything alright?” he asked her.

    “Sort of…” said Tacey. “Sorry about that…”

    “What is wrong with home?” asked Gordon.

    “I’m just concerned about what my mom will say if I Kate doesn’t alter her memory to not think that I’ve been away from a bit…” said Tacey.

    “What do you mean?” said Gordon.

    “My mom doesn’t trust anyone in our group of friends, except for Kate. I’ve just been through a lot, and she only trusts Kate because Kate was the one to help me through those rough times,” said Tacey.

    Gordon was quiet for a minute. He was surprised to hear what Tacey just told him about herself.

    “What about your father?” he asked.

    “He’s not around. My parents are divorced. And he wouldn’t care even if they weren’t, because he wasn’t a good guy…” said Tacey.

    Now Gordon was worried. He felt bad for Tacey.

    “Kate is the only person my mother trusts, and because of that, Kate has to use her powers to make sure my mom doesn’t remember me being away and hanging out with the group when I do,” said Tacey.

    She let out a sigh.

    “I’ve had a hard life. I’ve gone through a lot of struggles leading up to now, and… I’m even mentally ill,” she said. “And for a while, it was like no one would help me. Only person who really cared or wanted to help was Kate…”

    She paused again, looking up at Gordon.

    “It was a really hard time when this… event happened… I felt like I wanted to die, but if it weren’t for my best friend, I probably wouldn’t be here today…”

    Gordon was quiet when Tacey brought up these facts about herself.

    “I’m sorry that’s the case for you…” said Gordon.

    Tacey was quiet for a second, but she managed to slightly smile when she looked up ahead. Kate was talking with Jean, trying to cheer up her friend.

    “It’s okay. Kate’s my best friend and my sister. She really helped me out a lot with the things that happened. She had my back, and… she saved me… We’re friends for life,” said Tacey, still smiling a bit.

    Gordon gave Tacey a pat on the back, but he had a sad look on his face.

    ‘I can’t believe she’s been through some rough stuff, and only Kate helped her out… And her parents… no good father-figure…’ he thought.

    He shook off the sad thoughts.

    ‘Tacey is my friend. She’s doing so much to help me. I want to help her in return. First she found me and took me in, despite how I have no memories of who I am, and now she’s trying to help me regain my memories and figure out who I am. She’s already doing so much for me. I want to help her in return in any way I can,’ he thought.

    Suddenly, the group heard more noises in the tunnel. The four of them stopped walking.

    “Did you hear that?” whispered Tacey.

    “What is it?” whispered Jean.

    Kate pulled out her sword.

    “I think something’s coming…” she said.

    The four listened carefully. They could hear some sort of noises, and this time, it didn’t sound like it was regular footsteps. They couldn’t tell what it was though.

    Suddenly, something zipped right by their feet. A red shell moved right past them. Jean got hit, tripping and falling on the floor. The red shell stopped spinning and got up, revealed to be a Koopa Troopa.

    “Told ya you can’t kick us out of this warp pipe tunnel!” he told Kate angrily.

    The group saw a few more Koopa Troopas come out, and they all looked angrily.

    “And I told you…” Kate sneered.

    One Koopa Troopa tried to hit her, but she jumped up and jumped on it, knocking the Koopa Troopa out of his shell.

    “Authorized personnel only!” Kate shouted.

    She kicked the empty shell at the one that knocked over Jean. The shell hit the Koopa Troopa in the face.

    Another one tried to hit her, but she used her sword to slash it and knock it back.

    “Koopas, attack!” shouted the one Kate knocked over.

    The Koopa Troopas all got down and started to spin in their shells. A few of them ganged up against Jean, hitting him multiple times.

    “Ah! Stop it!” cried Jean.

    Kate rushed over. She grabbed one of them and pulled him away from Jean.

    “Leave him alone you oversized turtle!” she shouted at him.

    She threw him at the wall. The others that tried to gang up against her turned their attention at her. They started to attack Kate, hitting her a few times. But despite how she was getting ganged up against them, she used her sword to slash at them.

    A few started to spin towards Tacey.

    “This is ridiculous! We shouldn’t fight over this tunnel!” she said, trying to reason with the Koopa Troopa.

    The Koopa Troopa ignored her. He got down and started to spin, heading for her. The red-haired girl jumped up, dodging them, and managing to land on one. She knocked him out of his shell.

    “Give me back my shell!” he shouted angrily.

    “Here!” said Tacey.

    She grabbed it.

    “You want it back!? Have at it!” she snapped.

    She tossed the shell at the Koopa Troopa, knocking him and another Koopa Troopa back.

    “That could’ve been avoided if you didn’t decide to fight us!” she said.

    However, another two Koopa Troopas that tried to gang up on her snuck up behind her. They tackled her from behind and pinned her to the ground.

    “Ah! Get off me!” she shouted.

    “Tacey!” cried Kate.

    She tried to rush over, but one spun again and knocked her on the floor, tripping her in the process.

    The Koopa Troopas that got on Tacey started to pull on her hair, but Gordon rushed over. He grabbed one and punched him in the face.

    “Get off her you bastards!” he shouted.

    After he punched the first one in the face, the second one let go of Tacey’s hair. He tried to run, but Gordon grabbed him.

    “That’s not how you treat a person!” he shouted.

    He threw him at the wall. The Koopa Troopa hit the wall and passed out. Gordon extended his hand to Tacey. She took it and he helped her stand up.

    “Are you okay?” he asked her, giving her a worried look.

    “I’m okay,” said Tacey.

    “Guys, heads up!” said Kate.

    She was trying to protect Jean from a few more Koopa Troopas, but some more were heading for Gordon and Tacey. Gordon spotted a couple wooden planks that were short like baseball bats. He quickly rushed over and grabbed them.

    “Tacey, here!” he called out to her.

    He tossed one of the wooden planks and Tacey grabbed it. A Koopa Troopa tried to hit her, but she swung the plank, knocking him back.

    “Back off already!” Gordon said, swinging his plank and knocking another Koopa Troopa back.

    While he and Tacey did fought the Koopas that were ganging on them, Kate tried her best to protect Jean. The girl tried to knock them back, but they kept on ganging up on Jean.

    Jean cowered in pain on the floor. Each hit he took hurt, but at the same time, he was getting frustrated. He didn’t like how they were ganging up on him, and he was getting more angry than physically hurt with each time he felt a Koopa hit him.

    “Get away from him!” shouted Kate.

    She rushed over and managed to grab one of them. Gordon and Tacey fended off the Koopas that tried to take them out and rushed over and helped. They helped get the Koopas away from Jean, and as he felt no more hitting him, he opened his eyes. Jean felt calmer, and he watched as his friends defended him.

    “Retreat!” cried the leader Koopa.

    The Koopas headed down a tunnel, running away in panic.

    “Next time you try to come down this tunnel, you’ll be facing broken bones! Authorized personnel only means authorized personnel only!” Kate shouted at them.

    Once the Koopas were gone, she put her sword away. She walked over to Jean and extended her hand to him. Jean took it and stood up.

    “You okay?” asked Tacey.

    “Yeah… thanks guys,” said Jean.

    “No problem dude,” said Kate.

    “Tacey, are you alright?” Gordon asked her.

    “I’m fine Gordon. Thanks for the backup though,” said Tacey.

    Gordon smiled sadly at her.

    “Let’s keep going,” said Kate.

    The four continued down the path and to the treehouse.

    ‘Thank goodness Tacey’s okay. I just… I panicked when I saw them hurt her. I don’t want anything to hurt her again,’ thought Gordon.

    A little while later, and the four made it to the end of the tunnel. They finally came out of the warp pipe and found themselves back at the tree house. Kate walked them all inside, and they found Knuckles in the kitchen cooking some dinner.

    “Hey guys. You’re back. Wait, Tacey?” said Knuckles.

    “Hi Knuckles,” said Tacey.

    He smiled and put down his the wooden spoon he was holding. He walked over and gave Tacey a hug. Tacey smiled and returned it. The two shared a quick hug and let go.

    “It’s good to see you again, Tacey,” said Knuckles.

    “Same to you, Knuckles,” said Tacey.

    Knuckles smiled at her.

    “Gordon, this is my husband Knuckles. Knuckles, this is Gordon,” said Kate.

    “He’s my friend,” said Tacey. “He lost his memories, so I thought I’d bring him to see if you guys could help him figure out which universe he’s from.”

    “Where did you find him?” asked Knuckles.

    “She found me outside of Westopolis. I was just lying on the ground unconscious and alone,” said Gordon.

    “Huh… maybe you did come from another universe. Jean lost his memories to, but because he was held hostage at Fawful’s fortress when we found him, Fawful’s the reason why he has no memory,” said Knuckles.

    “Universes? I’m so confused,” said Gordon.

    “Why don’t you guys go to the living room and relax? I’ll help Knuckles with dinner,” said Kate.

    While Knuckles and Kate worked on cooking, Jean, Tacey, and Gordon headed to the living room. Jean and Gordon sat down in some chairs or on the couch, while Tacey walked over to a nearby bookshelf. She pulled out a photo album and walked over, sitting down next to Gordon.

    “Here, I can explain about the universes. This photo album Kate and I made has photos and memories of our friends from other universes and what there is to see,” said Tacey.

    She opened up the book and showed Gordon, and Jean, what was inside. As she did, she explained about the universes that she and her friends knew about, and what each one had. Jean only sat in silence, sitting away from Gordon and Tacey, just listening to what Tacey was saying. Gordon, on the other hand, looked interested and listened carefully to what Tacey was saying.

    As the three stayed in the living room, Kate watched Tacey sit with Gordon and talk to him. She formed a small smile.

    “It’s nice to see my sister interacting with Gordon. I think those two are good friends,” said Kate.

    “I’ve noticed. He may be from another universe, but if he decides to stay here in the Dream Universe like Hadrian and Mevia have, he can see Tacey more often,” said Knuckles.

    “Yeah. Well, that is, if Tacey can come here still. I keep having to use my powers on her mom’s memories so she doesn’t get suspicious on my best friend coming here so much,” said Kate.

    “Tacey can move out soon, and I know that when she can, we can let her crash here until she can get her own place,” said Knuckles.

    “Yeah, but it seems so long to wait…” said Kate. “I just want my sister to be okay…”

    She looked back over at Tacey and Gordon. Tacey showed him a photo that must’ve made Gordon laugh a bit. Kate smiled, seeing how happy Tacey looked and hearing Gordon laugh.

    “Well, I’m glad that she’s smiling now,” said Kate.

    About a half hour later, and dinner was ready. Kate and Knuckles told everyone to wash their hands before coming to the table to eat.

    When Gordon went to the bathroom to wash his hands, he sighed sadly after he turned off the running water and tried his hands with a hand towel.

    ‘I wonder why I forgot who I am…’ he though.

    He looked up at his reflection in the mirror. For a second, he saw himself, but suddenly, the mirror turned the color grey. His reflection faded away.

    “What the?” he said.

    He reached up and touched the mirror, and suddenly, he saw an image in his head.

    In the image, Gordon saw himself with two other people. One of them was a girl with long hair in braids and a ponytail. The other was a guy with a tuff of hair and he wore a black mask on his eyes. All three of them were wearing orange suits of some sort. And by the looks of where they were, it looked like they were in a prison of some sort.

    “Dude… it’s been almost three months! Why can’t we leave now?!” the guy complained.

    “I don’t know. It doesn’t take this long for us to leave. You think we messed up badly this time?” asked Gordon.

    “I just want to go home soon! We’ve never been here this long, and I think I’m going crazy…” said the girl. She shook a bit.

    Suddenly, a person appeared out of nowhere in front of them. They had dark red hair and a dark red goatee. They had dark grey skin, dark orange eyes with yellow, glowing pupils. And they wore an outfit that made them look like some sort of sorcerer or leader. Their outfit was the colors dark grey and had glowing red stripes on it on some parts.

    “Romeo!” said Gordon.

    “You… I want to talk to you…” said the person.

    Before Gordon, or the other two people could object, the person clapped his hands. He teleported him and Gordon to another place in the building. It looked like an office of some sort.

    “Romeo… I hope this isn’t a bad time to ask, but… when can me, Dustin, and Carmine go home? It’s just that… we’ve been here for quite a while, and I’m worried about how my friends are doing, especially Carmine…” said Gordon.

    Romeo gave him a cold look. It made Gordon shake a bit.

    “None of you are leaving…” said Romeo

    “What?!” asked Gordon.

    “You’ll just leave and forget about me like you always do! You’re staying here!” said the person.

    “Romeo, this isn’t like you! What’s wrong? Is there anything I can do to help?” said Gordon. He gave him a worried look.

    “Don’t call me by that name! That is not my name! ”said Romeo.

    Gordon fell silent.

    “I… I don’t understand…” he said.

    “Don’t ask me anymore questions! I brought you here to tell you that you will become the Warden of this place now,” said Romeo.

    “Wait… Warden?” asked Gordon.

    “Yes. Someone has to keep these prisoners in check, now that no one is allowed to leave,” said Romeo.

    “Wait, no one’s allowed to leave anymore?! Why is this happening?! Please… tell me what’s going on! I don’t understand, Romeo!” said Gordon.

    “I told you not to call me by that name! It’s not my name anymore! Now, you are appointed to be the Warden, that is, if you want to be so. What do you say?” said Romeo.

    Gordon fell silent. He looked down at the floor, and as he did, he pulled out something from underneath his shirt. He was wearing a locket, and he opened it up. Inside was a picture of Dustin and Carmine, the two people that he was with.

    ‘Dustin… Carmine… I’m sorry, but I have to do this…’ he thought. ‘We’re stuck here now, so… I hope this helps you…’

    “Okay… I’ll work for you,” said Gordon.

    The vision suddenly left Gordon. He jumped back from the mirror, gasping a bit.

    ‘What the?! What did I just see?! Was that… a memory!?’ he thought

    It took him a few minutes to finally calm down. He stood up, but even though he wasn’t panting, Gordon was still shaking a bit. It was as if his legs were numb, like he hadn’t walked in hears. He tried his best to stand up, almost falling over again.

    ‘That had to have been my past if I was there!’ he thought. ‘Wait… the orange suit that Tacey found me in… prisoner… was I… was I bad person?! And if I was… what have I done that were horrible things?!’

    There was a knock on the door.

    “Gordon, you okay in there?” he heard Tacey’s voice.

    “Y-yeah! I-I’m coming!” he said.

    He took a few deep breaths and exhaled, calming down enough. He walked over to the door and opened it.

    “Sorry if I took too long,” he said.

    “It’s alright. Kate, Knuckles, and Jean started eating, but I wanted to wait for you,” said Tacey. “Come on. I think you’ll like what Knuckles and Kate made. They make some chili.”

    “Yeah. I’m coming,” said Gordon. He smiled a bit to mask how he felt inside.

    As he walked downstairs, and when Tacey had her back facing him, Gordon stopped smiling. His thoughts circled back to what he just witnessed.

    ‘I saw a memory of my forgotten past… I… I must’ve done terrible things…’ he thought.

    Later that night, it was finally time for bed. Knuckles and Kate headed to their room, Jean went to his guest room, and Tacey and Gordon stayed in another guest room.

    Tacey finished brushing her teeth, but when she entered the guest room, she saw that Gordon had a glum look on his face.

    “Gordon, are you okay?” she asked him.

    Gordon was quiet for a minute. He was struggling to keep his cool after seeing that vision, that flashback, and he wasn’t sure if he should tell Tacey.

    “Whatever it is, you can tell me. I want to help you,” said Tacey.

    He was quiet for a minute. He let out a sad sigh, finally deciding to tell Tacey.

    “I… I think I had a memory of my past…” said Gordon.

    “You did? What is it? What did you see?” asked Tacey.

    Gordon let out another sigh.

    “I think I was a bad person, Tacey…” he said.

    Tacey formed a confused look. Understanding how vague he was being, Gordon told Tacey about his vision. The people he saw, the place he saw himself at, what he and Romeo said in the flashback, and how he accepted the role of a “warden”.

    Tacey was quiet when she heard Gordon tell her about his vision.

    “I was a bad person, Tacey… That place was clearly a prison, and… I’ve been there more than once… I was locked away there for some reason, and yet, I accepted to be the warden there?” said Gordon.

    He let out another sigh.

    “You shouldn’t be near me if I was a bad person…” he said. “I… I should go… what if the bad things I did was hurt other people? I don’t want to hurt you…”

    Tacey walked over to him and put her hand on his shoulder. Gordon looked up at her, confused by how she was looking at him with a concerned look.

    “I’ve done some stuff I regret as well. I feel like it could be bad, because I’ve hurt some people as well. The struggles I went through, my mental illness… for a while, I ended up hurting others… but I’ve learned from my mistakes, and I strive to help others. And one of those people that I want to help is you, Gordon,” she said.

    “You… you’re not mad at me? You don’t want to push me away? Stay away from me for what I’ve done?” said Gordon.

    “You’re still my friend, Gordon, and I want to help you,” said Tacey.

    She gently pulled Gordon into a hug. Gordon was stunned by how Tacey was still being kind to him, but he slowly returned the hug. He managed to smile after a bit.

    “Thank you Tacey…” he whispered.