Chapter Text
For a split few moments of strange peace, he had thought he had passed.
His existence being erased from, well, existence, should have done that. He should not have felt or thought anything else after disappearing in front of his counterpart (Though it was a sick way to go out, in his opinion). It should have been over, he should not have any sort of standing in reality or anywhere else for that matter.
So when he felt something touch him out of nowhere he could not control the way his body jump started to life.
Rex Dangervest shot up from a surface fast with a deep gasp, as if having been under water, and maybe now in a sense he was. Because information and colors flooded his brain with sensations that had him feeling entirely overloaded and it took him a second to register someone was actually acknowledging him. Which should not have been possible in the least , but he whipped around anyway to turn wide, panicked eyes on a somewhat blurry figure anyway, chest heaving. It felt as if his shoulder was burning and he could hardly remember why.
The figure immediately put their hands up at the wild look on his face. But their voice still sounded miles away. “ Woah guy. Not... Hurt yeh. You just kinda appeared on the sidewalk… Wanted to see if you’re al…Ight.”
For some unknown reason it took his brain some time to catch up, for the stranger’s words to piece together in a mostly tangible sentence and for his breathing to calm down, the swim at the edge of his vision beginning to fade. Rex tried to look around, but everything was so… Bright and strange and it hurt just trying to make sense of it all.
“Wh’re am I?” He slurred in an attempted grumble, alarms going off in his head, tense and prepared for a fight. When he looked back up at the stranger he noticed another person had joined. Both, somehow, looked way too familiar for comfort while wearing outfits that had him glaring and cringing at the same time. “Who’re you ?”
Things were finally starting to slowly come back to him, but the sounds of chaos replaced his initial dizzy spell. It all felt and looked so wrong and he wished he knew why.
It seemed as if he didn’t need to wait for an answer, though. Because the man–who wore a sparkly orange vest, neon yellow hard hat and purple boots–answered his questions way too cheerfully, with an unsettlingly friendly grin on his face as he pointed to his friend behind him. Completely unfazed by the current glowering he was receiving. “Oh, th’names Gary and this is Gale, we’re workers for the new construction company!” Then he squinted, a hand going to his bearded chin as he regarded Rex carefully.” You must be new to Syspocalypstar though, cuz I don’t recognize yeh at all. Gale?”
Because he had turned away to confirm with his friend, Gary had missed the way Rex’s face fell as it suddenly made sense. As the names clicked with the faces from his buried memories and the chaos around him reminded him of what only felt like an hour ago.
There was no way.
“Nope, not a clue.” Was Gale’s response with a shrug , both completely oblivious to the Master Breaker’s current existential crisis. She was wearing a neon green vest with sparkles covering her whole body, her smile just as unsettlingly bright when it came. “We could totally show him around though! Maybe bring him to the Queen-”
Rex had heard enough. He stood and cut them both off abruptly, his glare now hateful as they turned to look at him with surprise. “Ha, yeah okay uh, no. Stopping you right there. I don’t need a tour from you people and I certainly could care less about some queen. In fact, if y’wouldn’t mind, I would appreciate it if you both would leave me alone and never speak to me again! Got it? Good!”
His voice dripped with malicious sarcasm that had both former coworkers being taken aback from his brash and unfriendly behavior. And he didn’t give them a single chance to respond either, shoving his hands into the pockets of his vest to hide the way they started shaking and storming off in the opposite direction. He heard one of them comment something along the lines of, “We hadn’t had a grump like that in years… ” As he walked away.
And tried not to show how that information screwed with his brain, hiding the way he almost tripped over himself.
Years.
Here was his first problem. Somehow, somehow , he was alive. He was not currently existing in some strange time bubble or an infinite void of darkness, or even laying in some storage compartment in the Upstairs Realm completely unaware of his own self. Being acknowledged and living and breathing despite all odds saying how this was in definitely impossible. There was absolutely no way he should have been here right now.
The second issue was, if this was the case, if he really were truly still existing , then he somehow managed to end up back in his timeline. The timeline that he had tried to prevent. The timeline where his supposed friends had forgotten him and made “peace” with the Systar System instead of looking for him. A fact that was only being proven the more he walked down the sidewalk, trying to ignore everything and everyone who gave him strange looks as he passed while also trying to take in his surroundings. Buildings were just as big, bright and colorful as the people who lived in them. Every time he passed a blatantly obvious Systarian it had his skin crawling and his stomach twist. Different plants of all kinds of species grew in wild bunches, untamed and free. Almost every store or alleyway pumped out some kind of catchy pop music and scents of different foods filled his nose.
If it was a different time, if he were his immature former self, he was certain he would have been more than just delighted at all the changes Apocalypseburg had gone through. Now, though, all it did was fill his head with sounds. With overbearing sensations that had him walking faster with his head ducked down, absolutely no destination in mind. But that was the worst part; there was nowhere for him to go. Because, apparently , he had been gone for years .
In retrospect, he guessed that made sense, especially with how long he spent under the dryers and he could quite frankly care less for those reasons, but things had already changed and moved on without him and it served to only make Rex’s head spin faster , his blood boil with that unfiltered rage and he needed to find a spot to calm down before-
A glint of something shiny caught his eye and had the time traveler looking up. Freezing when something all too familiar filled his vision, sitting atop of a hill in the distance with the sun setting behind it.
The house… Their house.
Those yellow walls with a blue roof completely unmistakable, even from a distance, sitting in the backdrop of a land still recovering from war. The bottom of the double-decker porch swing swaying ever so gently in the barely-there breeze. The one he had made her all those years ago, and yet was somehow standing now despite having been destroyed, its pieces still floating aimlessly at the Stairgate. Rex stared at it for a good few hard minutes, stone faced. There was only one other person he could think of that would have even known about this house's existence in the first place.
Seemed as if not everyone had moved on. Not completely.
Without making the conscious decision, Rex’s left foot moved forward slowly. Once he had started, he found he couldn’t stop, letting his feet carefully carry him forward as if being pulled towards it by an invisible string. The rest of the world faded into the back of his mind.
What felt like hardly a minute was about five by the time his feet so much as touched the top of the porch, his head instantly turning to the pillows he remembered hand-stitching for countless hours, pouring every ounce of love and care into the craft while the world outside still feared. It was ironic, now, how he was the one angry and spiteful and the rest of the universe rejoiced. Without him.
Despite this, Rex only moved forward. Nothing would stop him now as he reached for the handle of the front door without a single moment of hesitation, as if somehow already knowing it was not locked. His intuition was only proven right when the knob turned with his hand, letting him inside as if welcoming him home.
He supposed it would make sense people would be more carefree about where they’d live if everyone was happy and content, but he found that sort of notion ridiculously unrealistic; something was bound to happen sooner or later, someone would fill those shoes eventually. It was only a matter of time. Still, as the adventurer stepped inside, he could not control the wave of nostalgia that unexpectedly hit his chest as he entered the living room; one of two, if he remembered correctly. Rex took a few extra steps in, leaving the door open. He didn’t plan on staying for long, but wanted to look around anyway.
Things were exactly where they were supposed to be. Pictures, furniture, rooms. It was enough for Rex to stand there and simply stare with an unreadable expression. If he went any further than this he was almost afraid he wouldn't want to turn back. For some unknown reason, something about this specific act of rebuilding the whole house from pure memory stirred a strange emotion in his chest. He wanted to hate it, he really did… But that hate he was so used to feeling by now just didn't want to come out.
Simply for the sake of nostalgia, he found himself muttering an incredibly uncharacteristically soft, “G’morning, apartment.”
“Not really an apartment, there, guy. You might be in the wrong place.”
Rex whipped around with alarm to the voice with his fists up and ready for a fight, only to stop once again when finding the owner.
Who leaned right against the doorframe with her arms crossed. Her hair was full of vibrant variations of pinks and blues, just a bit longer, but that was about the only change about her. There was still that hardened look in the glint of her eyes, in the way she stared him down with a dangerous warning.
“You wanna tell me why you, a completely random stranger, decided it was a good idea to come over and snoop around my house, uninvited and unannounced??” Wyldstyle accused with that same warning in her voice, void of any friendliness others may have given or received. Or any he might have received if he still looked the way he used to, however little that might have been.
Being stuck in the Dryar System made him realize just how much ridicule he received from his so-called friends; even from her. It was one of the things that helped him escape that wretched place.
It was just as well, though. Rex didn’t particularly blame her, but he also one hundred percent did. If it wasn’t for the fact that she had left him behind, he would not be as unrecognizable as he was now. In fact, even if that old resentment began stirring below his chest, he found a smirk slowly begin to slide on his face, mirthless but so full of ironic humor. It served to only have the Masterbuilder’s eyes flash with annoyance as she tilted her head.
“I’m sorry, did I say something funny ?”
While it would be entertaining at the very least to pick a fight here, the Masterbreaker knew when to pick and choose them; now was not the time. So instead, he raised his hands in placating surrender, while keeping that smirk present. “Oh nah, I just thought you city folk were meant to be more welcoming to newcomers, such as myself. It is… Interesting , to meet someone who isn’t like the rest.”
Just as he hoped, this made Wyldstyle scowl at him. It was so easy to get under her skin when he already knew her and she had no idea. “Well, normally, we would be, if said newcomer didn’t walk into someone’s house like they owned the place like you just did. You’d think a person would know better.” Annoyance was already on the edge of her voice.
Rex gave her a simple shrug, keeping up the innocent act. “Then maybe don’t leave the door unlocked? Just saying.”
It was a little hypocritical to condescend her, considering he couldn’t count the times in the past he had left his own apartment door unlocked and came back to find more than just a few things missing. But it was also more than deserved in his own opinion; if anything she was lucky he wasn’t making this whole thing worse.
Still, the way Wyldstyle got visibly mad was more than just satisfying. She stepped aside for him with a glower, looking about five seconds from smacking him across the face. “ Whatever. Just get out. I don’t want anyone as unpleasant as you in our home, anyway.”
He tried really hard not to falter with the way she added that, “ Our ”. Something in his heart lurched painfully at what that could mean, yet he only arched a brow in fake curiosity as he echoed it. “Our?”
“None of your business. ” Wyldstyle instantly bit back with a hard edge to her voice, pointing out back to the city. “ Go. Before I make you.”
“Alright alright, geeze. No need for violence, lady. I’m going.” Rex did what he was told, knowing the signs of when he was overstepping the line, walking right past her, feeling her eyes boring into his backside.
But there was that nagging in the back of his mind. That unanswered question he, for some ungodly reason, felt the need to answer, and he knew exactly how to get what he wanted. Rex waited until he was off the last step of the porch before turning to look back at her with a knowing smile. Crossing that unspoken line with absolutely no regrets.
“Not much changed about you despite everyone else changing around you, ey… Lucy ?”
He meant to keep his voice soft, just to add to the effect. Just to watch as Lucy’s brows furrow in confusion until he spouted her true name out loud, those eyes widening .
Then he found his back hitting the ground, spiking that pain in his shoulder as he gave a surprised grunt at the unexpected weight against his chest. One eye peeked open to stare up at her absolutely furious expression, her knee pressed against his chest while her hand took a clump of his vest to pull him closer. Eyes absolutely burning right down at him.
“How do you know that name . ” Lucy demanded in a venomous hiss, her bangs brushing against his forehead and a fist raised. Rex didn’t miss the way it shook, though. “Only one person knows it and only one person can call me that, and that right is definitely not reserved for the likes of you. ” She pulled him just a bit closer and emphasized, “ How do you know that name?? ”
Rex couldn’t help it; he really couldn’t this time. His lips split into a grin and before he knew it, he was chuckling, bringing a hand to his face. It was such inappropriate timing but for the Man Upstairs above it was all kinds of hilarious to no one else except him. Those chuckles came out as full on laughter and for a moment all Wyldstyle could do was stare at him with indignant, rageful confusion before fastening her hold on him again and hissed through clenched teeth, “ What’s so funny?! ”
He shook his head, trying to contain the laughter even though he found absolutely none of this funny, not really at least. When he was mostly able to contain it into a bubble in his chest he replied, looking up at her with a shit-eating grin with only malice behind it. “Ha, haha! Sorry, actually no I’m not but man. That look on your face was so worth it. Absolutely No Regrets, trademarked by me by the way.” He winked right up at her incredulous face, absolutely lost , but he didn’t bother explaining. “I mean seriously though, have I really changed that much to where even you don’t recognize me anymore? Like you're really laying those insults on thick . Sad but not surprising, honestly.”
Lucy's hold on his shirt was loosening by the second, her arm lowering as she now regarded him with confused bewilderment. “ What ?? I don't even know who you are, and I wouldn't want to know. Why would I recognize you??”
For some unknown reason, that last question struck Rex right at the chest. As if she really had gone through with punching him. His expression fell so unsettlingly fast it was like that grin wasn't even there anymore and it even surprised her.
“... Because.” The former Masterbuilder's voice was now dark, showing that hate and malice he had been hiding all this time for the sake of the show. Like he was merely the actor and she was the audience. “You asked me to change into this. Remember ?”
He watched as every single part of Wyldstyle froze. Cold, bleak denial washing away that confusion. Her face paling . It was so satisfying to watch, yet not satisfying enough.
“... What ?” She breathed in a horrified whisper.
Rex did not take his eyes off hers, but he took her hand from his vest and pulled it away; she did the rest, backing off a step and letting him rise. It was his turn to scowl at her now, unfiltered and unashamed.
“You were the one that said I needed to change with the times. That I simply wasn't ‘tough enough ’.” He emphasized his sarcasm by quoting it with his hands, rolling his eyes with a scoff. “Honestly, what would you expect after that, though huh?? After everything people had said about and to me it's genuinely surprising how long I managed to stay in denial for. To think that people, that you , actually cared enough. But no. ” The more he went on, the angrier he felt himself get, that rage boiling in his chest stirring as he rose, Wyldstyle staying right where she was kneeling. “Instead, I had to desperately sacrifice myself just to go save you, to prove a point to people that wouldn't listen no matter what I did, only to be left behind and forgotten for years . Years!!”
Rex's sudden shout had Lucy flinch. It stirred just the smallest bit of guilt in him, but it did not change his resolve. He kept his voice low, but now he was the one towering over her with a glare full of hate.
“ You wanted me to be tougher. But now that I am, suddenly it's not what you wanted. Suddenly, I'm unpleasant. I'm rude and brash and someone you don't want to get to know. But it's too late, because you already know who I am.” He lowered to Lucy's level, glaring right into her eyes and resting his arms on his knees and grumbling, “ Don't you? ”
Because of what he saw in the other timeline, what he had heard, he already saw this change coming. Watching Emmet become accepted and loved in his timeline only had him grow bitter; why couldn't that be something he could have? The kind of friendship and love he had wanted all his life he couldn't have anymore. It was too late.
Still. Watching that denial slowly change into grief, watching as Lucy's eyes glossed over as she stared right back at him, killed something inside of him.
“... Emmet… ?” She breathed out of pure disbelief, voice shaking ever so lightly.
Rex's brows furrowed in a hard line, the corner of his scowl deepening. “No. Not anymore. It's Rex, now.”
This only had the ex-rebel shake her head almost desperately. “N-no… No this isn't right. This is wrong. Emmet…!” Her hand went to touch his face ever so gently, as if assuring herself he was truly there in front of her. Her eyes flicking over his new features. “We… We didn't leave you behind. We thought you were dead.”
His lungs took in a sharp breath of air and he stopped breathing for a minute. Both at her touch and the new information. He didn't even blink as he deadpanned. “What.”
“When, when we got back from the Ceremony, the first person I looked for was you.” Wyldstyle began to explain softly, taking her hand from Rex's face. He had to fight to stop himself from keeping it there. “I wanted to tell you the good news, that everything was going to be awesome after all, just like you wanted, but… But the rest of the crew told me that you had gone after us instead of staying. Alone. “ When she looked down at the ground an old anger filled her eyes, her shoulders tensing at the memory. “None of those cowards even bothered to join you, so I took Unikitty and General Mayhem with me to go look.” At the look Rex gave her she smiled in a sort of bittersweet fashion and elaborated. “Armamageddon never happened, so our Systems came together in peace. Queen Whatev'ra and Batman have been happily married and ruling over us for a while now.”
Right. That would make sense, since he wasn't around to bring the apocalypse with him. But it still had a bitterness that felt like acid flow under his veins. A bitterness that did not last as she looked up at him with heartbroken guilt.
“I looked for you for hours. Days. Past the Stairgate, the Blasteroid Belt, even in the depths of space. We found the pieces of… Of the house floating around and…” She shut her eyes, bottom lip quivering ever so lightly as she leaned forward to press her forehead against his and Rex did not move. A small tear slipped down her face. “Batman… Batman had declared you dead a day after I returned empty handed. Without you. We held a memorial and everything on the Queen's orders because you were the one to start it. To start all of it. And we were all so blind… ” She shook her head again. “I've never forgiven myself for what I said. For what happened. I don't think I ever will because… Because look what happened to you.” Lucy pulled away to stare right up at him through unfallen tears like he was a complete stranger. “Emmet. Where were you..?”
Rex stared right back down at her.
If there was one thing he knew about Lucy, it was that it took a whole lot to get her to cry. To get her to admit to her own faults. But she was also no liar. Hell, she had even been brutally honest to him, and it may have led up to all of this now, but… She was not someone you couldn't ever trust.
He used to be like that. Now he had spilled so many lies from his own lips to last him a lifetime. If they even had lifetimes in the first place. He didn't want to think about that right now. So Rex found it ridiculously hard to find any sort of fault in her story, to find even a hint of deceit in her gaze. All he found was pain, guilt, openness.
It made sense. Of course it would.
Everything he had tried to do or had done, really did just lead up to nothing, didn't it?
Rex pulled his eyes away from hers to stare at the ground. Two sides fighting within him; the part of him that still wanted to hate and yell and destroy and the part of him that wanted to trust and believe . For as long as he had blamed them up until now… It felt like an impossible choice to make.
“... Let's just say, life has its ways of changing someone.” He finally murmured. The previous malice and sarcasm was gone from his voice. “And I don't think I'm going to be changing back into who I was before with the things that I tried to do.”
That sentence had Wyldstyle hesitate, watching him wearily. “... What… What does that even mean ?” Was her eventual, murmured response.
The Masterbreaker turned himself away. “You don't want to know.”
“Emmet-”
When her hand just barely grazed his he ripped it away and fixed her with another glare, startling her. “I said , I go by Rex now. And I don't need to be wasting my time explaining to you my whole life story. We both have better things to do, anyway.”
She blinked as he rose to his feet to leave, but stood with him and attempted to offer him a smile, trying to move on, to look hopeful and open. “O-okay, that's fine. All that matters now is that you're back, we can fix things, just-”
“No. We can't.” Dangervest answered abruptly, watching as she hesitated at the hard look in his eyes. “I'm not back , either, because I'm not staying. I'd say sorry, but… No Regrets, remember?”
He watched as her face fell. As something shattered like glass in Lucy's eyes. But he wouldn't stick around to fix it. He couldn't.
No matter how much he tried to deny it, turning and walking away from her hurt. The further he went the worse that pain in his chest became, but Rex never once turned back around.
As the setting sun painted beautiful colors that blended together over the horizon, turning day to night, Rex Dangervest--walking corpse of Emmet Brickowski–walked away from the one person they both cared about more than anything else in the universe. Leaving her to stand there in front of her house, in his metaphorical and literal dust, forcing her to watch him walk away.
No Regrets. He reminded himself again, even as his heart bled and bled and bled. Never trademarked but still mine.