I am a horrible person. Starting a new story while completely ignoring all the others I haven't finished? How dare I.

I honestly have no excuse, so...

This takes place in Hong Kong, five (ish) years before the plot of the show. I'm stretching the timeline a bit, making Rex about eleven in this - meaning when he meets Agent Six he's about to turn twelve (but with his amnesia he guesses he's ten?). I only do that because he's ridiculously young already, and writing him as nine/ten year old in this was really pushing it.

So this story will basically cover all off Rex's adventures in Hong Kong, and give a (semi) plausible excuse for Hong Kong-Rex's actions. It should be fairly obvious that this story will not have a happy ending, but I'll try not to make it a complete downer.

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer - Generator Rex doesn't belong to me

Rex has heard of Quarry. Everyone who's lived in Hong Kong for a month has heard of Quarry.

The name is whispered on the street like a new drug; dangerous and illegal and impressive. Not many can give a description to accompany the name, and almost none can say what his face looks like, but anyone can say he's terrifying. He's absolutely deadly.

A crime boss, a dealer, he's connected to ever major crime that happens in Hong Kong. He's intimidating and connected and powerful.

Anybody who knows the name also knows the phrase that follows it like a bad slogan; Nobody messes with Quarry.

Everyone knows that. If some fool even tries to, nobody gets away with messing with Quarry.

Well, that's what they say, anyway.

A smirk tugs Rex's lips up as he struts around Quarry's office room, trailing gloved fingers over a large oak desk.

"Nobody messes with Quarry, huh?" He mutters to himself, looking around the wide space. "That sounds awful boring. Let's mix things up, shall we?"

He spots the beautiful gray safe behind Quarry's enormous desk chair and his grin stretches. Plopping himself into the chair, "Surprisingly comfortable. Good choice, Quarry.", he rolls right up to the machine and presses a gloved hand against it.

"Hey there." He smiles to it. Rex likes to think it's grinning back, just as smugly as he is.

It's one of the most complicated safes that money can buy in Hong Kong, after all. It has layers of codes and alarms and things that are nigh impossible to crack unless you know the combination. Titanium outside, no chance of breaking it open, and it has the latest and greatest software.

Plus, it's in Quarry's office/room, behind Quarry's chair, a tiny security camera in the corner always on it – Rex scoffs a little to himself at the security measures.

"Bit overkill, if you ask me."

Then again, he reconsiders with a laugh, he's sitting right in front of it, security camera disabled, no Quarry in sight. Maybe the guy needs an upgrade.

"Okay. Be a nice safe and open up for me." He coos and closes his eyes as he sends his nanites in to unlock it.

There's a soft, almost click feeling from his nanites, and then a high beep from the safe as it creaks open.

And then there's nothing but brown and white (1). Crisp, bundled stacks of bills, all with lovely 1000 's printed on top, all waiting patiently to be stolen from their cold, secure prison.

"Come to Rexy." He whispers.

He shovels as much as he can into a small bag at his hip, a feeling like hunger overcoming him as he grabs more and more.

Pretty soon he can carry no more and he sighs as he closes the door on the rest of the fortune slowly.

"Sorry, guys." He says to the remaining bills.

Rex zips the black bag up carefully, making sure not to catch any money in the zipper. There's a certain glee mixing with adrenaline in his stomach, along with another emotion he can't place. A stick'ed-it-to-the-man sort of feeling, he decides, his teeth flashing white in the dark room.

"Thanks for the cash, Quarry."

He slips out the open window he came in, sure to spin the chair one last time on his way out, and laughs as he drives into the night.

"Que pasa, muchachos! " Rex yells as he kicks open his front door. It slams against the wall with a loud boom and in the darkness he can see a figure bolt upright on the sofa.

Faint, muttered Chinese cursing meets his ears, as well as distant sleepy groans and mumbles of annoyance. Ah, the familiar sounds of home.

He grins as he flips on the light.

"Isn't this a beautiful morning?"

There are more groans and even a pillow thrown at him, though he dodges the pillow with ease. Two figures stumble into the living room, all three mad at him.

"Shut up, Rex!" Tuck grumbles.

"I will kill you." Skwydd seethes. The threat is somewhat subdued by the fact that he's wrapped in a blanket and nearly walking into the wall.

"Ugh. It's not even morning."

Rex makes a big show of looking at a watch he doesn't have.

"Nope, totally wrong, Cricket. It's 4:30 AM. Definitely morning."

He's the only one to laugh at his joke. He really doesn't care.

"We hate you." Is the sour, muffled reply.

"Nah," He denies. "You can't hate awesome. Especially when you hear what I did."

They don't want to, but one by one they get up, wrap blankets around themselves, and collapse sleepily on the couch to await his story.

Rex gazes out at their bed heads and their droopy eyes and their drool-stained chins and their glares all pointed in his direction, and he's torn.

He wants to laugh himself silly at them, but he also wants to scoop them up and give them the biggest bear hug of their lives.

They are ridiculous oddballs and weirdos, all strange in appearance and a little prickly in personality.

Thing thing is, these are his ridiculous oddballs and weirdos. He would do anything for them.

Slamming the door as hard as he can behind him (What? He likes them, that doesn't mean he's nice), he snickers at the flinches it produces from half-dozing friends and leaps onto his chair. He settles in, comfortable, and tosses the bag carelessly onto the table.

"So who wants to guess what I did tonight?" He asks, smirking.

Tuck half-heartedly raises a bandaged hand.

"You were a horrible person and you interrupted my eight hours?"

"Besides that." He waves a gloved hand flippantly at him.

"Isn't that enough?" Tuck shoots back.

"Rex. What's in the bag?" Cricket interrupts, her grass-green eyes a little clearer than a moment ago. She's eyeing the black thing as if it's insulting her from the coffee table, a crease in her brow and an offended expression in place.

Rex's smile widens into a grin and he pretends not to notice how she blushes at his bright teeth.

"Guess." He says.

This is irritating enough to kill Cricket's blush and she stops toying with her hair to glare at him. She's not alone, he notes with a little laugh.

"Come on. Just guess." He urges.

"What makes you think we're in the mood for guessing games?" Skwydd snaps. Rex doesn't take offense: that's just how Skwydd always is, fully rested or not. Besides, he's learned that Skwydd's bark is worse than his bite. Or maybe sting. Do squids sting? Do they even bite?

He's lost track of the metaphor, he shakes his head at himself and sighs. Getting up, he walks over and unzips the bag and stomps to flop back down on his arm chair.

He finds the most comfort sitting sideways in it, feet dangling off one armrest and head resting on the other. It's a great view to observe their various expressions of shock and disbelief.

"I stole from Quarry." He informs them gleefully, swinging his legs.

They don't say anything for a moment. He's pretty sure they're all awake now, though.

Skwydd is the first to react – he touches the money gently, reverently, like he's afraid of it, and turns on Rex.

"How much?" He demands.

Rex leans in as if it's a huge, wonderful secret, and whispers,

"Half of what was in his personal safe."

Suddenly there's an explosion of indignation around him.

"Dude!"

"Rex, why?"

"Of all the stupidest things, Rex, this is just –"

"How much cash you think that is?" Skwydd asks over the other two, tone no grumpier than normal.

"– freaking unbelievable! I mean, I knew you were stupid, Rex, but this –"

"Probably like, three-hundred-eighty thousand.(2)" Rex speculates with a shrug.

"– this is insane! The money isn't worth what's gonna happen next!"

None of them seem to be getting that the money wasn't really the point – although it will be nice to buy some stuff that the guys want for a change.

The point was more of a, look-what-I-did kinda thing. Look-who-I-just-messed-with-and-didn't-get-caught thing.

He wants to giggle like a school girl, almost does – he stole from Quarry. It's a crazy rush.

"What, did you leave a note that says, 'I O U 380 thousand'?" Skwydd snaps irritably. His eyes are continually drawn back to the stack, though, Rex notices.

"What do you think Quarry's gonna do when he finds out, Rex?"

"Oh, he'll probably be furious." He says dreamily. Rex wishes he could be there to see the look on the man's face – it's gonna be awesome.

Cricket, Skwydd and Tuck all exchange the same look that has the same fear scribbled in Sharpe all over it.

It's the Rex-is-completely-bonkers look. Honestly, they use it so much it's starting to get a little tiresome.

"Rex, you did a bad thing." Cricket stresses.

A scowl overcomes his face.

Has he suddenly become a five-year-old? What's with the scolding voice?

"I did an awesome thing." He corrects. "And yeah, I know there will be consequences when he finds out, but I'm telling you he didn't catch me! All he knows is that someone broke in and stole his money. He has no idea that it's me."

Skwydd and Tuck are looking more and more relieved by the second. It seems they care mostly about the 'being caught' part of this whole endeavor, not about morals of stealing or whatever.

"You're sure though?" Tuck squints at him. "He didn't catch you on camera or nothing?"

"I disabled all the cameras, easy as pie." Rex promises.

"Still...wasn't this a big risk, Rex?" That's Cricket's quiet, disappointed voice.

She completely ignores Skwydd and Tuck beginning to count out the money in favor of staring into Rex's soul.

He hates it when she does this, hates it worse than her shy, flirty glances and even her infuriated glares.

The girl isn't yelling or screaming or trying to kick him with her tough, strong legs – she's giving him her disappointed gaze, like he's her child and he messed up.

It makes him ashamed and angry at the same time.

"No, it wasn't a big risk. It was a zero risk because I knew I could do it. And I did. This guy is a jerk, Cricket, and he deserved to be taught a lesson." He insists. "And if we just happen to profit from that lesson, well...good for us."

"Yay. Good for us." She says quietly. Though she doesn't argue the point anymore, she has a mix of dread and worry on her face and he knows she still doesn't agree.

Unexpected anger flares sharp in his chest. Abruptly, completely, he's mad at her.

"Say it." He hisses. "Just say it, Cricket."

She rolls her eyes, magenta hair falling forward in annoyance as she complies.

"Nobody messes with Quarry, Rex. Nobody."

"Guess my name's 'nobody' then, cause Quarry just got messed with."

"'Nobody' won't get away with it." She says, shaking her head at him like he's the idiot.

"You think she'll shut up if we buy her girly stuff?" Skwydd asks Tuck, the pair now completely at ease with Rex's actions. There are bills warm in their hands and a relaxation to their postures.

"Yeah, like those Blythe (3) dolls she's been wanting for forever?" Tuck laughs. Surprisingly, Skwydd even cracks a smile.

A dark expression flitters over Cricket's face. But maybe Rex only imagined it because it's gone in the next breath and there's only exasperation lingering on her odd, grasshopper-colored features.

"Báichī." She mutters at them. "I'm telling you, those things are seriously creepy."

It's a sentiment she's shared many times before.

"Buy me the new iPhone and maybe I'll forgive you." She orders.

Normally they would say no way and taunt her, ask what she would do in retaliation. It might turn into a prank war that would be actually pretty amusing to watch on the outside but absolute hell to suffer through on the inside, and Rex would inevitably have to play peace-keeper, a job which he sucks at.

Now, though, they have money and it's no issue, so Tuck shrugs and nods at her. No war, no peace-keeper needed. It brings Rex's good mood back.

Cricket gives Tuck an imperious head dip back, as though he is extremely lucky not to face her wrath.

"Now if you don't mind, some of us have some sleep to get back to." She shoots Rex a cold look, fury not quite diminished yet, and stomps back to her room.

An uncomfortable, irked feeling worms its way into his rib cage, squeezing his stomach. He doesn't care what she thinks, he tells himself. This was a great a idea.

It doesn't quite feel like the truth, though.

(1) That is what Hong Kong dollars look like, dollars which are the currency of - you guessed it - Hong Kong. A 1000 Hong Kong bill is a little over 100 US dollars, to give you some reference.

(2) About 50 grand in US dollars.

(3) Creepy Asian/Japanese dolls. Probably not meant to be creepy, but they are to me.

Warning: this will have a lot of personal headcanons in it and quite a bit of unsupervised minors. Also, some (poorly?) translated greetings and phrases from Chinese and Cantonese, seeing as the cast is all at least partly bilingual.

Oh, and one more note - I know that has Skwydd spelled with a 'q', but the Generator Rex wiki has it spelled as 'Skwydd', so that's what I'm going with here. Tell me if that bothers you!

Hope Rex and the gang aren't too OOC for everyone!

Thanks for reading! Please review!

Translations:

Que pasa, muchachos = What's up, guys?

Báichī = Idiots.