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Elisha · (06-05-2013)

*It's been months since Eric Rex has felt as relaxed as he does today. Strange, too, that it should fall at such a time. There is a clear target on his head. Rightfully so. He imagines if he were like them, he'd want to stop the carnage also. There are principles at stake here, he tells himself. That's what sets him apart from KnightMask, Rick Jones, and even Jason E. Smith. It's what sets him apart from Wallace Witasick. That's what he keeps reminding himself. Those men are fueled by emotions. They're all reactive. Eric Rex plans. That denial of self, that resistance to being guided by his feelings, is what led him to stay out of High Stakes...and what led to him staying away from Warfare the night after. For a moment, he lets himself think about how much he would have enjoyed snapping KnightMask's neck in the middle of that arena. He starts to lose himself. Replaying this fantasy over and over in his mind, and then...*

Lacey: Mr. Rex?

Eric: Lacey.

Lacey: Why does KnightMask hate me?

Eric: Because he's a fraud, Lacey.

*Lacey scrunched up her nose and puts her hands on her hips, like she knows she's being lied to.*

Lacey: He doesn't look like a frog!

Eric: Fraud. Not a frog. A fraud is someone who tells you he's something special, but he's not.

Lacey: But, KnightMask is the best.

Eric: Maybe, but he also hit you. That wasn't good, was it? All you wanted was an autograph. What sort of man hits a little girl?

Lacey: I'm not little!

Eric: That's true. You're very smart. That scared him, so he hit you.

*Lacey drops her arms and looks at the floor.*

Lacey: I don't like him anymore. Are...are you scared of me too? You won't hit me?

*Eric remembers his father. He remembers the beatings from him and the ones after in the foster homes. Sweat forms on his brow.*

Eric: I would never hit you. I'm not scared of you, either. We're a team, you and me. The people against us should be scared. You wouldn't hit me, would you?

Lacey: NEVER! What people are against us? You're the nicest man in the world!

Eric: There's a lot of selfish people in this world, Lacey. A lot of them that want to take you away from me and put you back in foster care.

*Lacey starts to cry.*

Lacey: I don't want to go back to...

Eric: I won't let them, Lacey.

*He starts to feel ill...*

Eric: I love you.

*Lacey looks up, her eyes red.*

Lacey: I love you too. I hate KnightMask.

*Instant relief. Are those butterflies in his stomach?*

Eric: He shouldn't have hit you. A very smart man once said that if someone hurts you, you should tell him he hurt you. If he does it again, you should destroy him. You do know that after he hurt you, he hurt one of my friends to try to take you away, don't you?

Lacey: Why would he do that!?

Eric: KnightMask is evil.

*Lacey clinches her fist.*

Lacey: I want to kill him!

Eric: He's not the only one, Lacey. I don't know what they want to do with you. Next week I'll get to be in the ring with one of them.

Lacey: Will he hurt you?

Eric: No one will hurt me. I'm just going to keep an eye on him so he doesn't hurt you. What do you do if anyone but me, Uncle Sal, or Victor comes near you?

*Lacey pulls out a cell phone.*

Lacey: I call the police and then I call you?

Eric: That's right. Nobody touches my little girl again. Isn't that right?

Lacey: That's right! Nobody touches you either! We're a team!

Eric: We sure are, Lacey. We sure are.

*The girl is attaching herself to him very quickly. That's good. That will makes the rest of this easy. Eric is still kicking himself for not factoring in the selfishness of Wallace in this whole thing, but Lacey will still prove to be his most valuable asset.*

Lacey: You're not gonna' make me go back to Uncle Sal's this weekend, are you? His house smells funny. It hurts my eyes.

Eric: Not if you don't want to. Want me and Victor to take you out for pizza?

Lacey: I LOVE VICTOR! YESYESYES!

*Of course she loves Victor. Children love ideals.*

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