"Wh-Wha?" She was a little nervous. The question seemed so invasive.

Chester addendum, "Or not last night. The one before, or maybe it was a week ago?" Chester could feel a headache forming trying to remember what happened after he blacked out. "The night you were walking home. When you met Leon." There was a bit of alarm in her heart after hearing this, "What happened after that?"

Jessie couldn't believe what she'd heard. She remembered visiting Nita a few nights ago. It was the same night she finally stood up to Crow. He hadn't bothered her since then. Now the bird was off on a mission, at least that's what the posters say.

Besides him, she didn't think anyone was following her. How didn't she notice Chester watching her? Then her alarm started to shift, a new feeling welling up from deep inside. A volcano of excitement she struggled to keep suppressed. 'He was spying on me?' she thought with a dreamy tune.

Chester watched as she started blushing and looking away. He assumed that her and Leon's conversation was of a private nature. He shouldn't intrude but for clarity, he needed to know what happened. Leon was one of the missing Brawlers. If all the other Brawlers had been copied into robots, wouldn't that mean that the Leon he saw was a robotic imposter as well?

Jessie was still fighting back her joy. Something that Chester had to interrupt, he requested that Jessie explain what happened on that night.

"Well, I was coming back from Nita's house. She's been really upset since Leon disappeared." Chester asked whether Nita seemed angry or sad? Jessie responded, "Both. She's really torn up."

Chester again felt partially to blame for that. He was the last one to see Leon on the night he vanished. If only he had kept an eye on him.

Jessie continued her story, "So while I was walking home, Leon showed up." She decided to keep quiet about her interaction with Crow. Better not to cause any more trouble for Chester by getting him involved with those bullies.

"He stayed kinda far away at first. And he kept saying I needed to come with him. But I was upset, he made everyone worry. He should go home; Nita is going to kill him if he doesn't." Jessie seemed a bit hesitant as she tried remembering the sequence of events, "Then he grabbed my arm. And it was really cold... and heavy. He pulled me away, but we were going towards my house so I didn't fight him. I remember hearing an explosions. I asked him what it was but he just told me to keep running."

Chester thought about the timing of these events. Clearly, the Leon she met was a robot, but he seemed to be protecting her. A thought bubbled up, but he lost it when Jessie resumed. "While we were walking, he told me a secret." Jessie clammed up after that. Her hands over her lips as she stopped herself short.

Chester immediately knew that she was hiding something. Whether secret or not he needed to know, "Jessie, I need you to tell me what he said." Jessie shook her head violently. Her pigtails bashed against her beige backpack. Chester leaned in a bit closer. Jessie was able to see the blacks of his pupils through the white film. "Jessie. Tell me."

The scent of candy mints on Chester's tongue broke her. Steam rushed from her ears as she finally cracked under the pressure, "Leon t-told me he was on a mission." Chester released her, causing her to fall on her back and continue her story, "Nobody is supposed to know, not even Nita. He wouldn't let me join either."

While she tried to get feeling in her toes Chester wondered about what she was saying. A secret mission? Does that have anything to do with the kidnappings? Chester reached down to help the girl up, "Did Leon seem weird to you?"

Jessie sat back on her crate, "Well... his voice sounded... funny."

"Funny how?"

"Funny-like, auto-tuned." Jessie continued with her narration, "After that Leon followed me to my front door."

Chester was stunned by this addition, "You mean the scrapyard's walls?"

"No. The front of my house. It was weird. He's never done that before." Chester was more stunned by the fact the boy was allowed to enter. "Then Nani let me in, and I went to my room."

Chester stayed quiet for a bit before asking, "Is that it?" Jessie thought about it for a second. Chester was getting a little frustrated watching her hold back information, "You've got to tell me everything, Jess."

Jessie nodded her head, "There was one more thing. Nani and Leon started talking to each other. I remember them talking in some sort of code. And then Nani pushed him away."

Chester nodded along until he heard that last part. Speaking in code? If they are both robots as he assumes, then they must have been speaking in a robotic language.

Though he was deep in thought there was one final part to Jessie's story, "And then-" Jessie's giddy grin doubled in size- "Leon said-" she had to hide her blush behind her pigtails- "he loved me!" She silently squealed out the last part as she tried to calm herself down. She couldn't handle something like this. First Leon confesses his feelings, and then she finds out Chester follows her at night. Is this the teenage love triangle she'd always dreamed of?

While Jessie daydreamed, Chester analyzed the facts. First, Leon was aware of the ambush, meaning that he is aligned with the enemy. However, he also protected Jessie. So is he still following his Brawler counterpart's personality? Then there's him making it to the front door of Pam's home. Maybe it's because he's friends with Jessie, but why couldn't Chester get in range? He's been friends with the Junkertons for years. He was an intern at the yard before he became an official Brawler. Why couldn't Chester get in?

He touched his chin and remembered the blue paint. Maybe it's the change in attire? But why would Pam's bots not notice another robot approaching her home? Why didn't he need to get escorted inside? Is it because he was with Jessie? Then Nani was at the door. Nani is a sweetheart. She wouldn't hurt a fly. So why would she push one of Jessie's friends? And what did they say to each other?

A robotic Leon escorts Jessie to safety. Making it past Pam's security with zero issues. And talking to Nani in code. Chester had a horrid realization. He could barely manage to turn toward Jessie. He tried his best to hold back the disgusted scowl on his bottom lip. If not for the mask covering most of his face, Jessie might have run away immediately. Robotic imposters escort her to safety. Free admission. Talking in robotic code.

Jessie was too caught up in her own imagination to notice Jester's disdain. She was currently holding onto her arms and swooning, "I mean. I don't not like him. But I feel like... I should keep my options open." She scooted a little closer to him with half-lidded eyes, "Especially when there's... so many... bigger fish in the sea."

Jessie took a leap of faith dive for Chester's lap. Instead, she met a face full of dirt. Chester had begun pacing back and forth. The hole he was walking into the ground grew darker with each turn. The girl. The girl. The girl. Gray told him it was the girl.

The clown turned back. This whole time he thought it meant she was the next target. A victim in the making. He never even considered that the girl was the link. An overprotective mother with skills in robotics. Missing Brawlers being replaced by robotic counterparts. Getting saved from the chaos of battles. He didn't want to accept it, but all the signs pointed to her.

He remembered the ambush. Not the one with Crow, the first time he was attacked. The battle with Mandy and Gray. The aftermath. The massive body that ordered them about. The color red.

"Jessie." Chester's voice unintentionally dropped several octaves. An involuntary response made by all men when they were trying to intimidate someone. "I need you to listen to me." Chester got down to a knee so he was on her level. The young girl was a bit apprehensive about the proximity. She steeled her nerves to avoid fainting at such an important moment.

Chester no longer felt the need to cover up his face around her. He took off the mask and his hat with it. The top half of his face was painted eggshell white so that it would be harder to see his eyes under the mask. For the first time in weeks, Jessie got to look into his eyes. Black as coal but piercingly blue at the same time. She missed his raspberry locks, swapped out for blueberry dye. But it was still her favorite Brawler.

Chester cupped her face in his hand. The difference in size and age is increasingly visible from touch. "Stop snooping around..." Jessie was a bit confused after hearing the edict, but Chester didn't let her speak, "No more detective work. No more listening to the walls. Don't even mention the missing Brawlers... In fact, if you ever see Leon again. Don't go near him."

"But..."

Chester put both hands on her shoulders. He deposited a substantial amount of his weight onto his arms. "Please!" Jessie could feel a heavy burden in his breaths, "Please... trust me." He was fighting back tears, "Just trust me." Chester stood back up with his bell and cap in hand. He wiped away that bleeding heart he almost fell into, "I don't want you out at night. It's getting too dangerous." Chester was about to put his cap back on when he made the final decision. "Stay in your room. Stay safe."

Jessie's heart broke at hearing this request. Stay in her room. Sheltered away from everyone else. As nice as it sounded it reminded her of mother. How she'd constantly try to hide her away from others. Like she was a glass sculpture in a sandstorm. She hated that overprotective motherbird mentality. It made her ball her fists in rage while her heart shattered with despair. That is until something landed on top of her head.

A large-cap covered up her eyes. She could feel a solid yet soft weight resting on the back of her legs. She pushed the hat out of her eyes, a beautiful sight ahead of her. Chester had that smile on she loved. He looked like the hero coming to her rescue or a dark fighter waiting to take her place in the final match. He bent over to poke her little button nose, "I'm not telling you to hide away. I'm saying to wait for me. When the time's right, I'll come back for that." He signaled to his black and blue ball and cap. Jessie took the accessory off her undersized head. The bells were so long that they nearly touched the ground even atop her head. The explosive smiling balls clanked about on the harsh floor. It felt like the gift of a century for her.

When she looked back up she was alone. Without the chiming of his bells, his disappearance came without warning. She looked around the alley trying to find out where he could have disappeared. It was the middle of the day, what shadows could he be hiding in?

She gave up after a few seconds. She looked down at the masked cap in her hands. It was like a bench in some ways. She was being told to sit on the sidelines until further notice. But at the same time, this was a baton. Chester passed responsibility to her. And soon she'd have to pass it back. She placed the cap on her head. It was far too big. She kept pushing it back up since it was blocking her eyes. But she was going to wear this with pride.

If Chester has one hundred fans, she'll be one of them. If Chester has ten fans, she'll still be there. If Chester has only one fan, then she will stand by his side with pride. And if Chester has zero fans, then she must be dead.

*jingle**jingle*

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

She rushed from side to side. The machines were blaring in her ears threatening to rip out her nerves through the canal. A few lucky robot servants were downstairs helping her monitor all of this. Their assistance gave her the time to move on to more pressing matters.

Her wide figure squeezed into the narrow doorway. Inside was a small chamber that was assembling a device. Its boxy form shuddered behind the plexiglass covers. Pam could have halted the presses but a check of the output log showed that everything was going to plan, despite the host of errors and warnings being spewed to the console. She inspected the small tablet on the side and nodded along with the data.

From the other side of the doorway, Nani piped up, "Mrs. Pam. I don't think we should continue."

She paused the construction to personally maneuver the robotic arms. The circuitry was on fire from the monumental task she was trying to program. This was her most complicated project to date. "Quiet, Nani."

She reactivated the program after some minor adjustments. She pushed past the tiny robot despite her discourse. "Madam, it's just that-" Pam turned a sharp corner and disappeared deeper into the lab.

Nani chased behind. Down the stairs and into the massive bunker that the robotic copies rested in. Each room was currently occupied by its respective robot occupant. Even the room with the name of Candi was occupied by the sweet form of one Mandy robotic representative. However, one robot stood in the middle of the room. A cast iron pipe held his weight as he patiently awaited his next task.

Pam rushed past him with a simple order, "Enigma, on me." The portal jumper popped off his cane and followed along like a sixties-era mobster.

Nani finally caught back up, "Ma'am. I just think that maybe this has gone too far."

Pam disregarded her point, "There's no such thing as too far." They made it to the other side of the hangar. Another keypad stood in her way. She inputted an eight-digit code; 27102021. The sound of hydraulics hissing spurred behind the reveal of a massive metal door. As Pam made her way into this new compartment Nani's robotic jaw dropped. Or it would have if Pam had given her a mouth.

There was a massive machine with a cylinder of water. Diagnoses were rushing down a console screen. A keypad waiting for her to type in her personal input. Changes, augmentations, information anything to prepare for its grand reveal. Enigma was unshaken by this revelation, almost as if he was always aware of what lay behind that metal divider.

Pam took a deep breath as she stared down her latest masterpiece. She thought back to what Nani had said. Going too far. "There is no too far. Only a product of your actions and its results."