Memory of the Dragon
***
Hey everyone! Glad to see that everyone's enjoying what I've written. I'm not exactly sure how good the next few stories I'm working on are going to be, but hey, I'll survive… I think… Ah well. Any who, here's the next story for ya's. Enjoy. J
***
And of course, Mighty Duck's belong to Disney, and I belong in an insane asylum… but that's anouther story… J
***
"I think he's coming too."
"Thank goodness. Maybe he can tell us what happened."
"Shh. He does have a concussion. Talk softly so it doesn't give him a headache." Someone whispered. This one came from the left as he started to become aware of things.
"Shh yourself." Someone muttered. "He's a hockey player, he can deal with it." Came a male voice. The female voice from before gave a huff as he began slowly opening his eyes. Two humans stood over him. One was a woman with dark brown hair, cut short and decorated with some kind of… was that glitter? She wore a black T-shirt and a pair of jean shorts. The other human was a man with dark brown hair also, cut short as well. He wore a gray shirt and a pair of jean pants. Both of them were looking at him in concern.
"Hey." The man said. "Are you okay?" he asked. He stared at the two humans and rubbed his head. Well, it hurt but he was still intact and his beak was still there. Where was he? What was going on? In fact… who the heck was he? When he voiced his concerns the two humans, who he now realized were teens, looked at each other then back at him worriedly.
"Your name is Nosedive. You're a hockey player from Anaheim." The girl told him.
"Anaheim?" he asked wearily, hand still on his head. "Where's that?" he asked. The guy spread his arms.
"Here. This is the city of Anaheim." He told him. "Course, you're several miles away from The Pond. How'd you get here?" he asked, standing and putting out a helping hand to help him stand as well. Nosedive took the hand, and nearly fell over. The two teens caught him and helped steady him.
"What's the Pond? A lake or something?" he muttered.
"No. It's the hockey rink." The girl said. She shot the boy a panicked look. "We should call the hospital." She told him. He nodded.
"Help me get him into the building. We can call from there." He said. With that they practically dragged the teen duck out of what he now realized was an alley. What had happened to him?
*-*
There were six ducks talking to Christi and Alex, the twins who'd found him, out in the hallway as a human doctor checked him over. He turned from watching the conversation and looked at the doctor who gave him a weak smile and patched up a long scrape on his arm. There was one on his leg, already dressed. The bump on his head was being cleaned by someone else, who shook their head and mumbled something that he didn't catch. Something about a… duckcycle? What the heck was that?
"Nosedive?" he looked up when someone called his name. The white duck wearing the mask had walked in. He muscles seemed to loosen when Nosedive looked at him. "You remember your name." He said softly, almost relieved. Nosedive merely looked at him. Yes the name was familiar and it seemed right… "Do you remember anything else baby bro?" Nosedive looked at him confused.
"Baby bro?" he asked in confusion. The white duck faltered as the rest came in slowly, almost fearfully.
"I'm your older brother." The duck said softly, taking off the mask. Nosedive started, then looked at him, wrenching his eyes away from his… brothers.
"I know you." He muttered. The duck, his brother, nodded.
"Do you remember my name?" he asked brokenly. At this Nosedive had to look away. He was hurting his brother and he didn't want to watch any more.
"No." he muttered sadly, almost helplessly. The white duck remained quiet, staring down at the mask as a tan-feathered duck stared at him, almost in shock it seemed. The tallest duck, one with gray feathers moved a little uncomfortably. The other dark feathered duck with an eye patch wasn't as tall, and he was staring at the floor. Two female ducks stood near him. The blonde one with glasses was trying her hardest to not cry as the red headed one shook her head. Nosedive looked at them, trying to remember, but nothing came. "Please, can someone tell me what happened?" he asked after a while. The white duck nodded.
"Yes. You went out for a ride on the duckcycle." At Nosedive's confused look he frowned. "They're like a motorcycle, just of our own design." He explained.
"Oh." Nosedive said in understanding. "Did I wreck or something?" he asked.
"Apparently." Said the tan-feathered duck, rubbing his arm that had some kind of hockey tattoo on it. "We're not really sure." He admitted. "Christi and Alex found you in an alleyway, without your cycle and completely beat up." He stated as the white duck put the mask back on his face quietly. Then he looked at the teen, the eyes glowing red. They stopped glowing and shook his head.
"We'll find out though baby bro. I promise." He said softly. Nosedive nodded slowly, then frowned at the human who began fussing at him.
"I'm okay." He told him. He frowned even deeper and looked away. "I just don't remember anything." He muttered unhappily. A hand clamped onto his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. He looked up to see his brother standing over him, the mask blocking those familiar eyes.
"You'll get your memory back somehow Dive. And we'll help you." He said softly. He then gave a weak smile. "Starting by telling you our names." He said. "I'm Wildwing." Nosedive nodded. Yes. That really sounded familiar.
"Canard." The tan duck said with a nod. The red head nodded as well and waved a hand.
"I'm Mallory." She said. The blonde looked up at him.
"I'm Tanya." She sniffled. The duck with an eye patch put a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"My names Duke l'Orange." He said, giving him a mock salute. Nosedive gave him a weak smile, which was returned by one with a much greater strength and hope as well. The largest duck put his hands together and bowed.
"I am Grin." He said. Nosedive blinked in surprise at that name, then looked up at Wildwing.
"That's his real name?" he asked softly. Wildwing nodded with a grin, as if Nosedive's question was funny. Nosedive looked back at the rest of the ducks, then back up at his brother. "Can I go home?" he asked suddenly. Wildwing nodded, giving his shoulder a squeeze again.
"Come on baby bro. The migrators right outside." He said.
"Migrator?"
*-*
The migrator had been huge, and sitting in it had made him a little nervous. Getting back to 'The Pond' was even weirder. They not only played hockey here, but the whole hockey team lived underneath it! It was strange, walking into what they called the Ready Room and seeing the large computer. As they walked past it he ran his fingers over it, wondering how long it took them to build it. Or how long it took Tanya more specifically. They'd explained on the way back that she was the technician/doctor of the team. Canard had been leader, but after being lost, Wildwing had taken over. Once Canard returned however, he didn't take up his role as team leader again, seeing as how Wildwing had managed to lead the team a lot better than he ever could have. Mallory had been with the army back on Puckworld, the world they were from, and Duke had been the leader of a thieves guild. Brotherhood of the Blade he'd called it. Nosedive had merely been brought along by Wildwing's request, and had apparently proven himself to his teammates. The ducks were fighting some saurian thing called Dragaunus, who was trying to talk over the planet. They'd chased him from Puckworld all the way here to earth. The battle was still on, even now. They played hockey to 'Keep up their game' as Wildwing had said. Whatever that had to do with fighting, Nosedive didn't have a clue. Of course nothing they'd said had made any sense, save for the fact that they were all ducks naturally, and not because of some freak accident. Of course at the moment, even that seemed to be a logical answer to all of this and they were all just insane or something.
"You okay kid?" Duke asked. Nosedive looked up at him and nodded, then made a face.
"Duke, if you're a thief, then why are you here?" he asked suddenly. Duke gave him a look, then nodded.
"Oh yeah. I didn't go into detail on that." He muttered. He took a deep breath. "Well, back home the saurians were taking over everything and sending innocent people to the camps. Sure I'm a thief but I don't go for the slavery thing. So when he started keeping food from them, me and whoever was left of the guild started taking it back and trying to free the people." He shrugged. "At first it was the thought that I couldn't exactly steal anything from anybody if everyone's dead and everything's been taken already. Then it just changed. I got sick off all those people getting treated so badly, and killed…" he shook his head, then looked up at Nosedive. "I wanted 'em free kid." He said gruffly. "I didn't care that I had a record and I didn't care that I'd probably be shot for half the stuff I'd stolen. I just wanted to do something right for a change and help those people." He shook his head. "No one deserves what those saurian slime balls did to them." He muttered. Nosedive merely looked at him, then nodded.
"Okay." He said softly. He looked at Wildwing. "Were we… were we ever in the camps that Duke was talking about?" he asked. Wildwing nodded.
"Yes. Until Canard freed us." He said softly. "There was a long time… I didn't know if you were still alive or what." He said softly. Even behind the mask, Nosedive could see the pain that his eyes held. He quieted and changed the subject quickly.
"Um, can I see the rest of this place?" he asked. "Maybe I'll remember something." He said hopefully. Wildwing merely nodded and led him out of the Ready Room, the others following.
*-*
Nosedive shivered, as he lay curled underneath the blankets in his room. He'd cleaned it up a little the night before, figuring that a concussion was a bad enough injury and he didn't need to add a broken neck to that as well. Now he lay awake in his bed, staring at the clock. It read seven-thirty in the morning in neon green. The only reason he was awake now was because of the nightmare that had repeated itself over and over in his dreams. With a huff he sat up and pushed back his covers then hoped off his bed. Then he walked over to his desk and picked up a piece of paper and a pen. He couldn't describe what he'd seen, but maybe he was a good enough artist that he could draw it. That… thing… whatever it was…
Wildwing found him coloring a drawing when he walked in an hour or two later.
"Hey baby bro." He called softly. Nosedive looked up.
"Hey." He called. He stretched out then. "What's up?" he asked.
"Nothing much. Just came to see if you wanted to go watch practice." He stepped closer in curiosity. "What are you doing?" he asked. Nosedive looked back at his paper, then picked up a few others, shuffled them together and handed them to Wildwing.
"I had some… bad dreams last night. I couldn't describe it but I figured I could, you know, draw it." He said with a shrug as Wildwing took the papers and began looking at them. He frowned as he stared at colorful images of Siege, Wraith, Chameleon, Dragaunus… and some large gray dragon. He flipped the unfinished coloring project to face his brother.
"What's this?" he asked. Nosedive shook his head.
"Dunno." He said softly. "But I saw it in my dream. I was riding a… duckcycle? I think? I dunno. But that wrinkly lizard dude was standing off to the side and that big gray dragon just came out of nowhere and slammed into me." He shuddered and fingered his arm. Wildwing turned the picture back, then nodded.
"I don't know what the dragon is either, but the others are the saurians, our enemies." He said softly. Nosedive looked at him, then shook his head.
"Figures they'd give me nightmares. They're ugly, huh?" he gave a weak grin, which Wildwing returned. He set the drawings back down on the teen's desk.
"Come on. I want you to watch us practice." He said. "Maybe if you watch for a while some of it will seem familiar. If you get the urge to join, you can." he said with a smile. Nosedive nodded and stood, walking out with his brother and allowing him to put an arm around his shoulders.
The ice rink was huge, and cold, but it seemed to draw him for some reason. Honestly all he wanted to do was get out there with some ice skates and get it back under his feet. Then grab a stick and hit that stupid puck past Wildwing and laugh at him. He started at that thought. Where it came from he had no idea, but it sounded fun.
"BOOBIES!!" came the voice of their manager from where he sat up closer to the press box. There was a collective groan from the team out on the ice, Nosedive turning to look at the large human who sat with a look of joy on his face and a cell-phone in hand. "I just got us the cover of the new sports magazine in LA!" he exclaimed. Nosedive gave him a confused look as Wildwing shook his head and told the team to continue practice unhappily.
"Where's LA?" Nosedive called to the human, forgetting about the hockey practice.
"North of here. It's still in California kid." Phil called, pressing buttons on his phone. Nosedive regarded him silently for a moment.
"Phil?"
"Yeah?"
"What's the magazine called anyway?" at that the human paused, then scratched his head.
"Uh, I dunno?" he asked, shrugging sheepishly.
"Call 'em back and ask 'em then." Nosedive stated as Canard slowly skated over to where he sat on the bench. Phil made a face at him.
"Hey kid, time is money!" he exclaimed. Nosedive merely looked at him and he sighed. "Alright. But I doubt you'd find it in a news stand around here." He called. Nosedive merely shrugged and turned to see Canard looking at him.
"You wanna play?" he asked. Nosedive merely nodded and Canard stepped into the bench area. "Come on, I'll help you get to your gear."
*-*
Dragaunus frowned as he watched the human news channel, a woman talking as a clip of Nosedive skated with a puck during a game played through as he shot the puck into the net, then turned to his teammates cheering.
"The youngest member of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim California was in a biking accident yesterday, suffering from a severe concussion. Doctors say that all other injuries were substantial, but the youngest member in the NHL is suffering from Amnesia." The picture changed to show Nosedive practicing and looking over at someone off screen. "However, the amnesia has not effected his game in the least and he will be playing with his teammates on Friday per his request." The reporter finished as the camera faded back to her. The man beside her chuckled.
"Actually the teen refused to be benched." He corrected her. "I was there when he told his brother he wanted to play." She looked at him.
"So other than a totaled motorcycle he's fine, am I right?" she asked.
"That and the amnesia. Doctors say that he should regain his memory over time." The screen suddenly turned black and Dragaunus growled.
"Seems that dragon you brought didn't kill him." He hissed at Wraith. The old saurian bowed.
"My lord, I did not have the power to keep him here much longer." He stated coolly. Dragaunus stood out of his throne and looked at him.
"You are lucky Wraith. If he'd not been given amnesia I would have killed you." He growled. "For now we are safe here. And that wretched duck can not warn his teammates of what we plan on doing."
"Yes my lord."
*-*
"YAAAHHH!" Thump "Aw geez… Ow…" Nosedive rubbed his sore posterior and glared up at his bunk bed, his heart trying its best to escape his ribcage. He stood shakily, nearly tripping on his blanket as his door opened. He turned in a panic when he heard the hiss… then calmed when he realized it was just Wildwing and Duke.
"Are you okay?" Wildwing asked, approaching his brother cautiously. Nosedive rubbed his aching head now and nodded slowly.
"Yeah. I just… fell off my bed." He muttered.
"We heard you yell." Duke said softly, inching forward. "Are you sure you're alright?" he asked. Nosedive looked at the two ducks, then sighed.
"You two like to panic don't you?" he asked wearily, putting his blanket up on his bed.
"Make that three." Nosedive nearly had a heart attack and he slammed against the wall, staring as Canard walked in, eyeing him curiously. "You okay?" he asked.
"Don't sneak up on me." Nosedive breathed, getting odd looks. "First it's that stupid hiss, then you…" he rubbed his face and slid down to the floor and groaned.
"Nosedive?" Wildwing asked, walking up to him and kneeling beside him.
"I saw that thing again." The teen muttered wetly. "It keeps coming after me. It won't leave me alone!" he cried in frustration.
"What thing?" Duke asked as he and Canard walked up to him. Nosedive pointed at the desk.
"That… that dragon thing…" he stated wearily. Wildwing stood and walked over to the drawings Nosedive had made earlier and frowned as he leafed through them. He turned when he found the gray dragon.
"This?" he asked, showing Nosedive the picture. Nosedive shuddered and nodded.
"Throw it away." He begged, covering his face. Wildwing's frown deepened as he looked at the picture, Canard and Duke looking over his shoulder.
"Wraith made this thing?" Duke asked in surprise.
"No." Nosedive groaned. The three looked at him. "He's always yelling at it or something… I don't know." He growled suddenly in frustration rubbing his head and messing up his hair. "I can't remember!" he cried. He let his head smack against the wall and ignored the searing pain that raced through as he closed his eyes in frustration. "Why? Why can't I remember? Why?" he whispered, tears beginning to fall unchecked. Someone wrapped their arms around him in a hug and he opened his eyes to see that it was Wildwing, his brother. He let out a sob and flung his own arms around his brother and cried into the older mallards shoulder, not caring that Duke and Canard were just standing there uncomfortably, watching and holding the paper Wildwing had flung to them as he'd run to his brother. It was a while till Nosedive finally calmed, and by then he was asleep. Wildwing looked up at Canard and Duke as he lifted his brother and put him back into his bed.
"You two ever see anything like that before?" he asked. Canard made a face as he looked at the creature that stared back with red rimmed black eyes and sharp bloodied teeth.
"Only in nightmares." He muttered. He shook his head as Duke frowned.
"It's a dragon." He muttered. "Dragaunus' favorites are always reptilian." He stated. "Think he pulled it through the dimensional gateway?" he asked. Wildwing shook his head.
"How many people can miss a dragon flying through the city? I mean, wouldn't we have seen it by now?" he asked. Duke shook his head.
"Not in Anaheim." He stated. Canard frowned.
"What about Christi and Alex?" he asked. "Wouldn't they have seen something?" Wildwing gave him a look.
"I say we go ask." He stated.
"Hey, me an' Canard'll go Wing." Duke stated. "You stay here with the kid." He stated. Wildwing nodded.
"Sounds like a plan to me. Be careful." He warned. They nodded then turned and left. Out in the hall, Canard looked at Duke.
"How many people are up and about at two in the morning?" he asked.
"Two as far as I know. And that's us." Duke answered him.
*-*
Conjuring the dragon was not easy and Wraith hated that he was even trying again. The creature had been nearly impossible to control and had tried to attack him, only to be dragged back to his world. He hadn't been happy about being controlled, even for that short amount of time. Fortunately the other spell had worn off as well. Now Dragaunus was even watching the old saurian as he tried to bring the dragon back again. This time the saurian overlord had an electronic controller ready so he wouldn't have any trouble with the large creature. Large as a horse actually. This was one of the smaller breeds. Not the smallest but one of them. And it was the only one he had the strength to pull through. Wraith muttered something under his breath, his head bowed and his eyes closed. Then he opened his eyes, which flashed gold as he raised his head and his hands. The air began to whirl around them and twisted till a whirlpool of air and dust could be seen. The air swirled faster then solidified and stopped spinning and began pushing them back, a hot moist smell traveling in it. A roar sounded and shook the ship causing Dragaunus to step back.
"Come forward beast! I command you!" Wraith yelled the order. A pained roar, then a gray creature with a large wing span flew towards the portal, a misty world was all that could be seen behind it as he came forward, gaining size. Finally it pushed through, the portal closing quickly as the gray dragon with black eyes trimmed with red shook itself as if in disgust.
"Who called me?" it growled in a deep male voice.
"I did beast." Wraith stepped forward. The dragon roared in fury, rearing back onto his hind legs.
"YOU!!!" he yelled in fury. Dragaunus and Wraith dodged as he came down with a swipe of his sharp clawed front legs. "I'LL RIP YOU APART!!!" the dragon roared furiously.
"YOU'LL DO NO SUCH THING!" Wraith yelled back, raising his hands again and casting another spell. The eyes of the skull on his stick glowed red this time and a blue mist traveled from his to the dragon who roared. He gave a pathetic woof and grunt, then quieted as the mist surrounded him. "Now my lord." Wraith said softly. "I can only control him for so long. He is aware of it this time." He warned. Dragaunus merely walked up to the dragon and patted the side of his head. The dragon tried to bite at him, but was only able to open his mouth a short way and lift his head barely an inch off the ground. Dragaunus laughed at him.
"Nice try my little pet. But you belong to me now." He stated, slamming the device onto the back of the dragons neck, causing the poor creature to scream in pain, then groan as he lay on the floor breathing heavily, his tongue lying out of his mouth as he rested his head on the floor, the disk taking over. Dragaunus stood near him, then glared at Wraith. "Seal that little portal of yours off Wraith. He's here for good." He stated. Wraith bowed and did as he was told. The portal closed, never to be opened again. Somewhere inside the now enslaved dragon, something screamed.
*-*
"AAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!"
Wildwing had to step back as Nosedive began lashing out.
"NOSEDIVE!!" he cried out, stepping forward and grabbing the teens arms and holding him down. This made Nosedive cry out again, weaker this time. "NOSEDIVE!! WAKE UP NOSEDIVE!!" he called. He loosened his grip as Nosedive came too, breathing heavily.
"Wing?" he asked weakly. Wildwing nodded.
"Yeah." He whispered. He nearly fell backwards as Nosedive leapt up and wrapped his arms around him, sobbing. He held his brother, panic in his eyes and worry on his face. What was happening to his brother? The door to the room opened with a hiss and Nosedive cried out again, cringing into his brother's embrace. Wildwing looked to see Mallory, Tanya and Grin standing there.
"We heard it this time." Mallory stated. "I thought I was dreaming the first time." She muttered. Wildwing nodded.
"Tanya, is there anyway we can get the doors to not make that hissing noise?" he asked suddenly. Tanya gave him an odd look.
"It's the air pressure Wildwing. But yeah, I think so. Why?" she asked. Nosedive's whimper quieted her. "I'll get to work on it." She said, turning and pressing a button on her omnitool. She kneeled by the door and got to work as Mallory and Grin walked over to the teen.
"Nosedive?" Mallory asked. "What did you dream about?" she asked.
"That thing." He muttered. Wildwing looked at her when she gave him a confused look.
"A dragon. It's what attacked him apparently. Wraith was controlling it. He drew a picture of it." He said, nodding towards the desk. Grin walked over and picked up the picture and frowned as he looked at it.
"He is a very good artist." He rumbled. Mallory looked at the picture as well.
"Yeah." She agreed. Then she shuddered. "Oh man, that thing looks awful." She muttered. Nosedive said nothing as he sat back and leaned against the wall, staring at them all dully.
"We think Wraith was controlling it. Or at least trying too." Wildwing said. "Duke and Canard are checking into that now." He told them. Tanya stood and sighed suddenly.
"I've fixed it." She told him. "Just pray that no one tries to sneak in." he said softly. Wildwing nodded.
"I'm staying here the rest of the night." He told her. She nodded.
"Should I do this to the other doors?" she asked. Wildwing shook his head.
"No. This will only be for tonight." He informed her. Then he looked at Nosedive. "You okay baby bro?" he asked. Nosedive took a deep breath and nodded, then looked at Grin.
"How'd you get so big?" he asked suddenly. Grin smiled and gave his bow again.
"My father was a weight lifter and my mother knew how to cook." He rumbled. He winked at the teen who sat there for a moment, looking at him, then chuckled.
"You serious?" he asked. Grin merely grinned at him.
"And what did your parents do little friend?" he asked. The room went silent as Nosedive sat there, looking at him in a perplexed way for a moment. Then he looked away, and then at his brother.
"She liked to dance." He said softly. Wildwing gave a trembling smile and nodded.
"She loved to dance." He said softly. "And you were her favorite partner because she was short and so were you." He grinned suddenly. Nosedive grinned back, then looked at the rest of his teammates.
"I remembered something." He stated. Grins met him all around.
*-*
Canard sighed as he and Duke walked into the Ready Room.
"Geez I'm beat." He muttered. Duke nodded, then made a face.
"What, are we pulling an all-nighter?" he called to the others who were sitting on the couch talking.
"Yeah sure. Why not?" called Mallory, lifting a cup of warm cocoa. "Want some hot chocolate?" she asked.
"I'm getting coffee." Canard called.
"Bring me a cup?" Duke asked as he headed for the couch.
"Yeah sure. But I'm not sitting on the floor." He called back as he headed out the doors. Duke merely waited till he was gone then took the last seat with a sigh.
"Oh yeah. Life is good." He stated. Nosedive's snickering made him look up. "You're in a better mood." He observed.
"He's been remembering things." Wildwing said in a pleased and happy tone as the teen 'oohed' and grabbed some of the marshmallow's that were sitting in a bag on the coffee table they'd set up. "So, did you two find anything?" he asked. Duke nodded.
"Yep. You know, Canard and I weren't the only insane people running around the city at two a.m." he stated, leaning forward and grabbing a marshmallow. "Mookie and Thrash were out there with Christi and Alex." He looked at Nosedive. "All four asked how you were doing." He said. Nosedive gave him a confused look.
"Who's Mookie and Thrash?" he asked.
"They're friends of yours at the comic shop in the mall." Mallory stated. "Mookie's got a fusia mohawk…" Nosedive looked at her for a moment, then a look of recognition came over him.
"Oh yeah!" he exclaimed. "And Thrash's mom is a Star Trek fan and owns just about every toy they ever came out with. They keep 'em all in the basement along with half of Thrash's 'experiments gone wrong'." He stated. Then he grinned. "Alright I remembered something else." He grinned happily.
"I remember that. She dragged me down there." Wildwing said suddenly.
"Dude! You're not suffering from amnesia anymore! Way to go!" Nosedive said goofily, high fiving his brother and getting laughter from everyone including himself. He looked up as Canard walked in and frowned at Duke. "I got the floor!" he said cheerfully, sliding off the couch and onto the floor.
"Geez, you're hyper." Canard stated, handing Duke his coffee and sitting next to Wildwing who scooted over closer to Tanya. Tanya in the meantime began playing with Nosedive's hair, which caused the teen to look up at her and squeak when she playfully popped the top of his beak. Wildwing snickered.
"Oh man, I haven't seen him do that in a while." Duke grinned as Tanya suffered from a fit of giggles and Nosedive sat forward laughing silently.
"Makes me think of last summer when Wraith turned him back into a kid." Canard stated, looking into his coffee. Tanya blushed at that statement, having accidentally been called mom on more than one occasion by a hyperactive five-year-old Nosedive. Nosedive merely looked at him weird for a moment, then looked at his brother.
"That's where those pictures I saw a little while ago came from then, huh?" he asked. Wildwing nodded.
"Thrash and Mookie had to get it all on film." He grinned. Nosedive snickered and shook his head.
"Those two are crazy." He muttered, then he looked back at his hot chocolate. "Oh no. The poor marshmallows." He suddenly moaned. "They have given they're lives. For a much worthy cause of course." He added and started drinking his cocoa. Then he made a face and set it far away from him.
"What?" asked Wildwing, who of course had been laughing at him.
"It's a solid." At that the others burst out laughing.
"Well duh! You've been putting marshmallows in it since you got it!" Mallory snickered.
"Yeah but… well it's… it's too sweet…" Nosedive suddenly shrugged and eyed the cup. "I guess the marshmallows didn't like dying for my cause…" he cocked his head to the side causing Canard to snicker at him. They all quieted down after a moment.
"Duke, did Christi and Alex say they saw anything?" Nosedive asked suddenly as he stared at his cup, the rest of his body slouched against the couch and his arms resting on his legs. Duke and Canard shook their heads, then looked at each other. Duke sighed.
"No kid. They didn't see anything." He told him. "They were just walking back from a party at a friends when they saw you lying in the alley and went to see if you were okay." He told him. He made eye contact with Wing and shrugged helplessly. Nosedive merely looked at his cup while Wildwing nodded. It was okay.
"Did you guys ever find my bike?" he asked suddenly, looking over at Wildwing. The elder mallard nodded as he sat up.
"It's in the hanger… what's left of it is." He said softly. Nosedive looked at him.
"Can I see it?" The ducks looked at each other and then at Nosedive. That was how they ended up in the hanger at three, nearly four, in the morning checking out a basically destroyed duckcycle. One side was ripped up, the other side looked as if it rubbed by a giant thing of sandpaper. The front wheel was gone and the back one was bent and torn. Nosedive looked at the bike, then down at himself.
"And all you got was a concussion and some scrapes kid." Duke stated. "You're lucky." He stated. Nosedive shook his head.
"No. That thing just flung me." He muttered suddenly. He walked over to the bike and put his hands on the jagged ripped metal. "I remember it." He said softly. "Every time I try to sleep I see it. That thing." He shuddered as the others watched him.
"Dive?" Wildwing asked as Nosedive closed his eyes and shook his head. The teen looked up when he heard his name.
"Wing. I remember what I was doing." He said suddenly. He pointed at the bike. "I know why I didn't break anything. Because Wraith was trying to control that dragon and it broke free at the last minute. It ripped up the bike and flung me, then went after Wraith." He said quickly. He looked up at his brother. "That's why no one saw anything. Wraith probably sent it back to where it came from because it went after him!"
"Do you know why you were so far out there?" Canard asked. Nosedive frowned.
"I think I saw Wraith and I wanted to see what he was up too." He told them. He frowned. "He was gonna' sic that thing on us." A loud roar that made Nosedive freeze and a large crashing noise made the ducks start.
"Going to? He just did!" Mallory cried.
"Everyone, to the Migrator!" Wildwing called. Nosedive followed them and looked at his brother after he'd strapped himself into his seat. "Nosedive, just stay here." Wildwing said softly, as if reading his brothers mind. Nosedive merely nodded as they drove the Migrator up and out. Once outside they saw the dragon come back out of the main lobby, Siege and Wraith waiting in the parking lot.
"I thought you said Wraith couldn't control him!" exclaimed Canard.
"He can't." said Wildwing suddenly, he pressed something on the control board giving them a zoom image of the saurians. "Look, they've got a control device."
"Man that guy seriously has a one track mind!" Nosedive exclaimed. Wildwing drove the Migrator to the parking lot then stopped.
"Let's go team!" he called. Nosedive watched them go, fear rooting him to the spot as he watched his teammates go after the saurians and their newest pet. How could he possibly help them now?
*-*
Siege laughed as he hit Mallory upside the head.
"I'm gonna' stomp you flat duck!" he exclaimed, raising one of his massive feet. A battle cry made him look up in confusion and he cried out as Canard slammed into him, sending him flying. The tan mallard helped Mallory up as she shook her head groggily.
"Oh man. That's going to hurt later." She muttered as he handed her, her puck bazooka. "Thanks." She breathed. He nodded and looked over to where Siege was starting to get up.
"Gas pucks?" he asked.
"Gas pucks." Mallory nodded, taking a puck from his outstretched hand and firing it at the saurian. The puck was caught by Siege who growled as the purple gas enveloped him, causing him to roar in frustration.
"Not again!" Mallory and Canard merely high fived each other smugly, turning and running to help Duke, Tanya and Wildwing who were dealing with the dragon and Wraith.
"Watch his front legs and his tail!" Wildwing called, then yelped as he dodged the large and sharply toothed head.
"Don't forget those teeth!" called Duke as he slashed at Wraith. "They kinda' snap at ya, you know?"
"Oh ha ha." Tanya said dryly as she fired an exploding puck at the dragon. This only made him madder.
"Oh man. Not good!" Wildwing muttered as the dragon charged Tanya. He ran to her and collided with her, sending them both rolling out of the way. He smiled at her as he helped her stand. "Need you in one piece." He stated. She gave him a weak grin then gasped.
"GRIN NO!!" she called, causing Wildwing to turn. The large duck was on the dragons back, having gotten up there somehow, and was now eyeing the metal plate that controlled the dragon. The dragon on the other hand didn't like having a foreign rider on it's back and was trying very hard to grab his leg in it's jaws or at least buck him off.
"I am sorry friend. But I cannot allow you to continue." Grin rumbled. Then he grunted as he ripped the metal plate off, causing the dragon to scream in pain and send Grin flying. He landed on the pavement with a short cry and lay still.
"GRIN!!" the others yelled, running towards him. They stopped when the dragon roared and stomped towards him.
"I will have his flesh." He growled shakily, almost drunkenly. Wraith merely cursed and teleported himself and Siege away. There was no way he was sticking around, especially with that dragon out of control again.
"GRIN NO!!" Wildwing yelled, racing forward. Canard grabbing his arm and pulling him back was the only thing that kept him from having a ripped chest, the dragon taking a swipe at him.
"He's confused!" Duke called.
"Yeah, but he's going to eat Grin!" Mallory cried. "What do we do?" she asked. Wildwing frowned.
"We open fire." He growled.
"NO! STOP!" all attention was centered on Nosedive as he ran towards Grin. The dragon roared at him, causing him to stop and slide a little on the pavement. "Stop!" he called. "It's just me! Remember?" he asked. The dragon huffed.
"You controlled me?" he growled.
"No! That was Wraith!" Nosedive said softly, backing away slowly as the dragon stalked towards him. Away from Grin.
"LIAR!!" the dragon reared onto his hind legs and came crashing down again, knocking Nosedive to the ground.
"No! I swear! I was the one on the bike remember? The one he made you attack?" he asked. The dragon paused then as the others helped Grin out of the way, Wildwing following the dragons moves. "I don't do mind control!" Nosedive exclaimed. "If I did, I certainly wouldn't have you attacking my family." All movement stopped at this.
"Family?" the dragon asked suddenly. He made a purring noise as he eyed Wildwing and the others. "They are all related to you?"
"No. Just Wing." Nosedive said, nodding at his older brother.
"And the others?"
"Teammates."
"Ahh." The dragon was advancing slowly again. "I'll make a deal with you. Send me home and I won't eat any members of your… family." He growled. Nosedive stared at him, pale underneath his feathers.
"I… I don't know how." He said. The dragon growled at him and advanced again, then suddenly found a puck launcher in his face. It was Wildwing.
"None of us have the technology." Wildwing growled. "But if we work together we can find a way to get you back to your world and get us back to ours." He called loudly as Grin limped over with help from the rest of the team. They stood behind Wildwing, Nosedive staring at them in shock. "Eating one of us isn't going to help you any." Wildwing stated. The dragon growled.
"Your pucks can't harm me." He growled.
"YES BUT MY LASERS CAN!" came Dragaunus' voice. "GOODBYE ALL!" he exclaimed, firing from atop the migrator.
"WING LOOK OUT!" Nosedive yelled, rushing forward and pushing his brother out of the way. The dragon screamed in pain and fell away as hunter drones attacked, then rest of the team springing into action as Dragaunus teleported away.
"Wildwing! You alright?" Canard called.
"Fine!" Wildwing called back, rubbing his head. He stopped as he saw Nosedive lying near him, unconscious. "Dive's out!" he called, checking his brother. There was a small burn on his head that was starting to bleed. "The shot grazed him but he's out cold!" he exclaimed. He suddenly ducked when he heard the sound of metal screeching and a few dismantled Hunter drones flew over him.
"DRAGAUNUS!!!" the dragon yelled, taking to the air with a loud roar of fury. Wildwing watched him, quiet as the dragon looked down at him in anger, his black red rimmed eyes furious. Their eyes met and the dragon loud out a loud purr and took a deep breath and fired a breath of flame that took out several more hunter drones. The dragon then landed and stalked up to Wildwing and stood before him with a stance that portrayed pride. "Maybe I should rethink eating you. I will need your help getting that disgusting creature." He rumbled as he eyed Grin, who had regained his footing and was helping Canard check the last hunter drone into the side of the Migrator, causing the machine to explode. "Your team is strong." He muttered. Wildwing nodded, still holding his brother.
"Yes they are." He agreed. "You are too. What's your name?" The dragon eyed him and barred his sharp teeth.
"The humans of my world call me Kazar." He growled. "I doubt some one of even your species could pronounce the name my people gave me." He growled. Wildwing gave him a look yet remained silent as Tanya walked over slowly and knelt down to check Nosedive.
"He'll be okay." She said softly as the rest of the team came over. Kazar nodded to Grin.
"Thank you… friend… for freeing me." He rumbled. Grin merely bowed.
"Let's get back inside the pond." Wildwing said. "Kazar you can just follow the Mirgrator down the ramp."
"Joy…"
*-*
Waking up in the infirmary was new… as far as he knew. Nosedive moved around a little to look around and saw that Wildwing and Tanya were sitting in a corner fast asleep, arms wrapped around each other. Canard was sitting in the one chair that resided in the room, arms crossed and head resting on his chest. He too was asleep. In the next bed over, Grin was asleep with a bandage around his chest. He must have bruised something when he fell off the dragon… which was curled up in a far corner. Nosedive leapt up at that, panic rising as the dragon opened those black eyes and blinked at him sleepily.
"So. The little one has awaken." The dragon rumbled. Nosedive merely stared at him as he stretched like a cat then walked over to him. "I am glad that you were only knocked unconscious." He said, bowing his head slightly. "I am Kazar." He rumbled.
"H-hi." Nosedive stuttered. "I'm… Nosedive." He gulped. Kazar gave him a smirk and nodded.
"Yes. Your brother told me." He said softly, nodding at the team captain as he sat on his haunches. "Still having memory troubles?" he asked. Nosedive shifted uncomfortably.
"A little. I'm starting to remember things." He said softly. Kazar frowned.
"I am sorry. I did not mean to cause you harm." He stated. Nosedive gave him a weak smile.
"It's okay." He said softly. "I know." He looked over at his brother. "Does Canard know they're sitting like that?" he asked. Kazar shook his large head.
"No. They came in after he'd fallen asleep." He stated. Nosedive snickered and finally stretched, looking at Kazar.
"You gonna stay with us?" he asked. Kazar nodded slowly.
"I miss home." He muttered, looking down. Nosedive looked at him.
"What's it like?" he asked. "What's it called?" Kazar looked at him surprised, then smiled.
"It's paradise." He mummered as Nosedive sat back against the ring over his bed. "It is called Threndar, named after some creature that came and saved it from destruction years ago. My race doesn't care much for the tales so I could not tell you much about it." He explained. "However, I can tell you that it has nice warm weather, not this cool climate you have here. There is a high humidity and I've only heard of one or two humans that actually liked it." He added. Nosedive nodded.
"Yeah. They do like to complain, but then so do I." He admitted. Kazar nodded.
"Everyone does that. It is in our natures." He shrugged. He shifted a little. "There are more plants on my world, more hills and valleys and in some parts mountains. There are some areas where there is no plant life. There are deserts and ice lands. There are even fire ranges." He purred happily at the thought of that. "I was born in a lava pit." He stated. "The son of a King." He quieted and his face fell as he looked down. "The only son to our races king." He muttered. "My other brothers' eggs were crushed by a race of humans with ambitions of taking over." He said softly. Nosedive looked at him quietly. "I am, I was, the last hope for my race. Many other races have already fallen." He sighed unhappily. "And now, so too shall mine." He muttered. Nosedive frowned and sat forward.
"Hey. Don't talk like that." He stated. "I promise we'll get you back home as soon as we can." He promised. "You just need to have a little faith, you know?" he asked. Kazar frowned at him.
"Do not make promises you cannot keep boy." He growled, then turned to leave.
"I don't." Nosedive called after him. "And I don't give up without a fight either." He called. Kazar turned to look at him, swishing his tail back and forth.
"We shall see boy." He stated. He nodded then left the room, the door hissing as he started to walk out. A cry of fear caused him to turn and see Nosedive covering his ears, shaking. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"That noise." Nosedive muttered, his eyes closed as he shivered. Kazar looked at him oddly, then stepped back, the doors hissing as they closed. Nosedive cried out and nearly fell off the bed trying to get away. The dragon watched him curiously.
"It is just the door." He purred, walking to the teen who was shakily sitting himself up again, clutching his chest as he tried to catch his breath.
"That sound." Nosedive breathed. He stared at Kazar. "You made that noise." He said softly. "Just before you slammed me and threw me from my bike." He whispered, still shaking. "You… You were going to finish me and…" he shook his head, clutching it with his hands. "You went after Wraith and I passed out." He muttered. "I can't sleep because of that noise!" he cried unhappily. Kazar frowned and sat again.
"I had no control." He stated.
"I know." Nosedive moaned, letting his hands fall. "I just… why does it scare me?" he whimpered. Kazar shook his head.
"I do not know Nosedive." He purred. "Just realize that I will not make it at you again." He stated. "You will have to get over this." He purred, standing and making for the door. The door hissed as it opened and he continued out, Nosedive staring after him and clinging to the edge of the bed.
*-*
"AND THE DUCKS WIN!! 7-3 THANKS TO GREAT PLAYS BY NOSEDIVE, DUKE AND MALLORY!!" Nosedive shook his head as the team entered the locker room, Kazar curled up on the floor watching them.
"Interesting game." He stated. "I like it." He grinned at this causing Grin to snicker at him from his spot of resting on the dragons flank.
"Yes, he only yelled 'injustice' everytime the ref didn't call a bad shot." He stated, rubbing his healing midsection. Nosedive merely changed to his civilian clothing and looked at them wearily.
"Can I?" he asked. Grin shrugged and Kazar nodded. A moment later Nosedive was sitting at the dragons neck, fast asleep.
"He definitely earns that." Canard stated, nodding at the teen. Mallory sighed as she ruffled her sweat soaked hair.
"Ugh. I'm taking a shower." She groaned. She frowned when Canard whispered something to her and glared at him. "Shut up. I happen to not like the smell of sweat." She muttered at him. He laughed at her as Wildwing place the mask of DuCaine back on his face where it belonged.
"Good game guys." He called to his team. Then he nodded to Kazar. "And I'm glad that you like it." He stated. Kazar nodded back at him. "We're also glad to have you with us." He added softly. Kazar nodded.
"I thank you." He said softly. The team merely smiled at him, then came over and rubbed his head causing him to purr. "Don't do that too much, I might get used to it! You ducks are going to turn me into a house pet!" At this the team merely laughed at him, Nosedive merely smiling in his sleep as a dream of memories flowed back to him. Everything was going to be okay, and as far as he was concerned, one day they'd go home. All of them.
END