Summary: Suppose for a moment that Megavolt suddenly remembered everything he had ever forgotten, and the consequences that would bring. Now, what if I told you there was no need to 'suppose' at all?...
Rating: K+
Author's Note: With the exception of the "Escaped Convict" two-parter, every two-parter to date has begun on every fifteenth chapter, meaning every two parter is fifteen chapters from the last one. This trend is going to start to be broken here starting this chapter with the start of a rather Megavolt centric story arc that will stretch through this two parter and two other chapters (so it's almost a four parter story). I have some great things planned for this story arc, so be sure to not miss it. There will be no fun facts this chapter. I'll save that for part 2 and do it all then.
54.
Recollection Part I
Bushroot glanced out the greenhouse window at the cool, bleak, early November afternoon, and shivered. "The weather's getting colder again." he remarked aloud. "Not very good for mutant plant-ducks like me. I am so glad I don't have to go out there today."
"Ah, it ain't that bad, mate." Rowe remarked from where he was working, tightening a bolt with a wrench. "I've seen it get colder around here."
"That's easy for you to say, you and that thick fur coat you've got." Bushroot remarked, turning to look at the otter.
"Not my fault you weren't born with one." Rowe grunted, giving the bolt one last turn.
"Regardless, though, Bushroot's got a point." Megavolt said, sitting on a worktable, watching the two work. "The only reason we're even here is because the boss decided to let us have a day off."
"Yeah, so he could do paperwork in peace." Rowe said with a snicker. "Did you see the stack he's got in his office? It's huge!"
"Guess even supervillains from parallel universes have to do paperwork." Bushroot said. "But we should be thankful. Not only are we inside, out of the cold, but we're also got a chance to prepare for Quackerjack's birthday later this week."
"Good seasons, is he ever going to be surprised when we pop out from hiding on Thursday." Rowe remarked, grinning in excitement, twirling the wrench in his hand. "A surprise party was a great idea, Megs."
"It's the only way to throw a party for Quackerjack." Megavolt remarked. "You know him. He loves surprises. I'm just glad Negaduck authorized us having one."
"Yeah, how did we pull that one off?" Rowe asked curious. "Negs's never cared before."
"I think NegaCrimson put in a good word for Quackerjack." Bushroot said. "Remember, her own birthday was last month, but it was overlooked because we were busy robbing the bank that day."
"Oh yeah, that's right, she was a bit ticked off by that." Rowe remarked. "Good thing she didn't have her P90 handy."
"I'm sure the Uzi wasn't much better, though." Megavolt said, remembering the incident.
"Whatever the case, we can do the birthday party, and we have time to put Quackerjack's gift together." Bushroot said, patting the device he and Rowe were working on. "A shock cannon. When fired, it'll shock anybody within it's sights."
"Quacky'll love it." Rowe agreed, placing a cover on the device and bolting it in place. "I just hope we can get it working in time."
"I'm not sure where the problem is." Bushroot said, rubbing his forehead in dismay. "We've checked out everything that could be causing the problem, but they all check out. It almost seems like it's just not getting enough charge to fire properly."
Megavolt looked at the device for a moment. "Maybe it just needs an extra boost of power." he remarked, hopping up and strolling over.
"You sure, Megs, me matey?" Rowe asked. "This could require a great deal of power, and we all know what you're like when you're low on power."
"It's not like I have anything else to do at the moment, right?" Megavolt asked with a shrug, looking the device over. "Where do I hook up?"
"There, I suppose." Bushroot said, pointing with a sigh. "But be careful, Megs, and don't give it too much power. The circuits are very delicate. They won't withstand too large a power surge. And if they overload, the feedback alone would be enough to give you a rather nasty shock, Megs."
Megavolt waved his hand dismissively at this. "I've gotten shocked more times than I can remember." he said. "Really. When was the last time I got shocked?"
"Just yesterday, when you accidently crossed the wires to the dohickey you where working on at the time." Rowe commented.
"Case and point." Megavolt said. "I can't even remember that. I usually never do after power shocks like that. Most likely the same will happen here."
"You never remember anything, Megs." Bushroot said, placing his leafy hands on his hips.
"So what's the big deal, mate?" Rowe asked. "If he doesn't remember, then won't that be a good thing?"
Bushroot frowned, and rolled his eyes. "I suppose not." he said. "Just...be careful."
"Fine." Megavolt said, hooking up the device. "Alrighty here, let's see what it takes to get this thing to fire."
He scrunched up his face and grunted in concentration. Sparks flew, and then the device started to hum. A moment later, a pulsating sound rang out, and the air around the cannon's tip began to waver.
"It's working, mate, keep it up!" Rowe said.
Bushroot moved to check on the power reading for the device, frowning still. Megavolt kept feeding power into the device, the going being easier now that he had started. The air in front of the cannon continued to fluctuate as low-level, invisible, energy surged through it. The wavering patch continued to grow until it reached the other end of the greenhouse. Bushroot nodded at the readouts he was getting.
"Everything is checking out." he admitted. "Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after..."
Suddenly a bolt of lightning shot from the edge of the greenhouse to the cannon and struck it. Megavolt jumped in surprise. The device sparked, then the hum grew in volume. Bushroot checked the readouts again.
"Static discharge!" he exclaimed. "The power levels are spiking because of it! Megs, disconnect, now!"
Megavolt hurried to do so, but moved too late. The device sparked again, this time more violently, and then a wave of electric energy washed over him. Yelling in pain, Megavolt started shaking as he was being electrocuted. The device continued to spark violently, and bolts of energy continued to snap at the cannon's tip.
Bushroot moved to Megavolt as if to help, but was forced to step back when Megavolt arched his back, the device sparked yet again, and bolts of energy started leaping to Megavolt. The device was still feeding power from Megavolt, and now Megavolt was drawing more from his surroundings to compensate, who was barely conscious at this point. As bolts dangerously started zapping all around them, Rowe did the sensible thing by grabbing Bushroot and throwing him and himself to the floor behind the shelter of the worktable.
Megavolt continued to be shocked by the overloading device until it's circuits could withstand no more, and burned out. A metal panel exploded off it's mountings, narrowly missing Megavolt, as he was shocked by one last surge of energy, and then throw backward as the device gave off one last series of sparks before sputtering into silence. Megavolt crumpled to the floor, unconscious, and slightly singed. Cautiously, Bushroot and Rowe both jointly looked out from behind their hiding place.
"Megs?" Bushroot said.
"Hey, Megavolt, are you all right, mate?" Rowe called, seeing the coast was clear and came out of hiding and to Megavolt's side. He checked for a pulse. "Well, he seems to be alive."
The smoldering device behind them suddenly burst into flames. Bushroot quickly commanded some nearby plants to take a couple of nearby water cans and to dump the contents on the fire. It was quickly extinguished. By this point, Megavolt suddenly flinched and started to stir, moaning.
"Megs?" Rowe said, shaking his friend. "You all right mate?"
"Owwwww." Megavolt moaned, opening his eyes weakly and trying to sit up.
Rowe helped him up. "Easy there, mate, you had a bit of a shock, there."
"A very unnaturally violent one, too." Bushroot added, standing over them. "You're lucky to be alive."
"Ow." was all Megavolt had to reply. "That really hurt."
Rowe raised his eyebrows. "You remember that?"
"Yeah! Of course I remember..." Megavolt began to snap, but then stopped suddenly. "Hey, yeah, you're right! I do remember that. Huh, normally I don't remember the actual shock after shocks like that."
"Well, that wasn't exactly a normal shock." Bushroot pointed out. "You sure you're okay, though?"
"Yeah." Megavolt said, standing up weakly, Rowe hovering nearby to help if needed, and sniffed. "Just gotta shake it off like all the times previous." To emphasis the point, he shook his body all over, as if waking up from a long nap. "To be honest, I feel a bit more alert, more alert than I've felt in a very long time. Very...clear minded."
"Maybe that shock did some good then." Rowe said, leading Megavolt over to a chair. "Maybe you can remember things better now."
"I think I already can." Megavolt said, blinking in surprise. "Bushroot, remember when you lost your favorite fern and I helped you find it?"
Now Bushroot blinked in surprise. "Yes, I do, but I'm surprised you do." he said. "That was nearly eight years ago. The Fearsome Five hadn't been together for much longer than a week."
"That's right, I remember that." Megavolt said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. "I remember helping to install a device into the city's power grid that would create that shield we used to ensnare the city. Quackerjack was there, watching my back. Darkwing showed up then, and we..."
He trailed off in surprise at how well he could remember the event. His friends were surprised as well.
"Looks like that shock rebooted your brain, mate." Rowe commented.
"Wow." Megavolt said, amazed. "I wonder what else I can remember."
"How about something about your past?" Bushroot asked curious. "I've asked you about it before, but I couldn't get a straight answer."
"That's because I couldn't remember." Megavolt explained. "Never have ever since I forgot it. I don't really think I'll..."
But he trailed off suddenly as a whole flood of memories came rushing back to him...
"Look, I still don't get it. But as an athlete, I can see you ain't runnin' hard enough."
--
"At last! What I've always wanted! The ability to entertain people at cocktail parties!"
--
"I am the terror that flaps in the night! I am the grade curve that gives you an F! I am Darkwing Duck!"
"Megs, are you okay?" Bushroot said, suddenly interrupting his thoughts. "You kinda blanked out there."
Megavolt shook his head. "I remember!" he exclaimed, awed. "I remember the night I became Megavolt! Well, I could always remember that, but I was a little fuzzy on the details..."
"Really, mate?" Rowe asked, curious. "Tell us!"
"Well..." Megavolt began, easing into a chair, "It's kind of simple, actually. See, way back in high school, I was bullied by this annoying guy named Ham. Ham String. One night, after school, when I was conducting an experiment with static electricity, he and his girlfriend stormed in and, in short, wreaked the experiment. Created such a huge build up of static electricity that it all got channeled into me, leaving me with my powers, a terrible hairdo, and Swiss Cheese for a memory."
"That actually makes sense." Bushroot commented. "The energy build up probably gave your body a kind of...dependance...on electricity and shorted out parts of your brain in the process."
"Maybe this last shock undid all of that." Rowe reasoned. "That's why you can suddenly remember."
"Maybe." Megavolt said, creating sparks with his fingers. "I've still got my powers, but my memory's slowly coming together."
"What else do you remember?" Rowe prompted.
"That I attacked the senior prom dance that night." Megavolt commented, remembering. "And that I fought with Darkwing for the first time that night as well..."
"I foresee doom."
--
"All right Darkwing, you may be tough, but I'm not! Or something..."
--
"Let this be a sign to those who lurk in the shadows. Let terror pierce their wizened hearts! For though they flee to the ends of the earth, no evil doer shall escape the wrath of...Darkwing Duck!"
"Wow, and Darkwing predates all the rest of us." Bushroot remarked, impressed.
"Anything else mate?" Rowe prompted.
"I remember being bullied." Megavolt added, like it was helpful. "I was always left to fend for myself. No one ever stood up to me." he paused. "No wait, there was one time just shortly before this all happened..."
"Please refrain from accosting me, 'sir!' Or I shall be forced to retaliate!"
"Oh yeah? You and what army?"
"Why don't you leave him alone, Ham? Pick on someone your own size!"
"That's kind of difficult when I'm the biggest kid in the school, dweeb! But since you offered, maybe by trashing the both of you, that'll even things out, huh?"
"Oh dear."
--
"Well, this is certainly the side of the trash can I've never seen before."
"You get used to it. By the way, thanks for trying to stand up to Ham back there."
"Oh that? Oh, well, that was nothing. Particularly since it didn't do any good."
"Maybe not, but it's a step up from the past, in which everyone just ignored me."
"Well no more. If you ever need help, I'll be right there."
"Promise?"
"Sure. I could use a hobby anyway, even if it does include saving someone else's bacon."
"Gee, uh, thanks. I'm Elmo, by the way. Elmo Sputterspark."
"I'm Drake. Drake..."
"...Mallard." Megavolt whispered to himself.
"Who?" Rowe asked, puzzled.
"Drake Mallard." Megavolt repeated, standing up.
"Who's that, Megs?" Bushroot asked, not recognizing the name.
But Megavolt wasn't listening. "He promised to help me." he muttered, starting to pace. "He promised. And yet on the night I needed him the most, he didn't turn up. Did he not mean it? Did something happen to him that kept him from coming to my aide? And after that night, why didn't he ever appear again? I could've used his help loads of time since then, yet he...didn't...show...up!"
Sparks suddenly flew from Megavolt's hands in anger. Bushroot and Rowe glanced at each other, then Bushroot moved to stop Megavolt's pacing.
"Whoa, whoa, wait, Megs." Bushroot said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Who's Drake Mallard? We don't know who he is."
"I need to find him." Megavolt suddenly announced, shrugging off Bushroot's hand and heading for the door.
"What? How?" Rowe exclaimed.
"I don't know, but I'll figure it out!" Megavolt exclaimed, and then he vanished out the door.
Bushroot and Rowe glanced at each other. Then they both sighed in exasperation and ran after Megavolt with the intent of following him.
Except it wasn't so easy. Megavolt already had a head start, and he apparently had a need to hurry, for they quickly lost him in the midst of St. Canard. But it wasn't a big deal. They knew where he was heading. Whenever Megavolt was confronted with a problem and his services wasn't needed by the Fearsome Five at the moment, he always headed to his hideout to think things through.
And sure enough, it was there where Bushroot and Rowe found him. Megavolt had arrived at his apartment-like hideout that sat over an old electrician's shop well ahead of them and was currently rooting through his closet, tearing it apart in apparent search of something. Bushroot and Rowe stood at the door watching him in puzzlement for a moment.
"No...no...no...c'mon...wait! That might be...no, that's not it...oh c'mon..." Megavolt muttered as he dug, throwing the unwanted items over his head.
Bushroot cautiously approached Megavolt. "Megs, what are you doing?" he asked hesitantly.
"I'm looking for my yearbook!" Megavolt replied from within the closet.
"Your yearbook?" Rowe asked.
"Yeah, my yearbook." Megavolt said. "You know, the book with all the pictures of you and your classmates in it that you get when you graduate?"
"Oh." Rowe said. "Well, I wouldn't know too much about those, having never gotten the chance to attend high school."
"Why do you want it, Megs?" Bushroot asked.
"Well, as I see it, what better place to start looking for Drake Mallard than in my high school yearbook?" Megavolt asked. "I could use that to get started searching for clues, and then build up from there."
"Now wait, a yearbook is what you get at the end of every school year." Bushroot said.
"Yeah." Megavolt replied distractedly.
"You said you got your powers on the night of the senior prom."
"Yeah."
"That's before your graduation."
"Yeah."
"But after you became Megavolt, you fought against Darkwing and lost, got sent to jail."
"Yeah."
"So if you were in jail, how could you have attended graduation so you could get your yearbook?"
Megavolt paused. "Oh." he said, emerging from the closet. "I suppose that would explain why I can't find it."
"So much for the hope that his memory had returned." Rowe muttered under his breath.
"No, I just didn't think of that." Megavolt said, standing up, kicking at one of the items he had thrown from the closet. "Guess I'll have to start somewhere else on my search."
"But why, Megs?" Bushroot asked, stepping towards him. "Why is it so important that you find this Drake Mallard?"
"Because he promised to try and help me when I needed it." Megavolt said. "And I want to know why he hasn't been doing that."
"Megs, he probably just said that to reassure you, and didn't really mean it." Rowe said, stepping forward. "He's probably long forgotten you even exist."
"That thought's crossed my mind." Megavolt admitted, turning around and looking out the window.
"Then why bother finding him?" Rowe asked. "What could you possibly get out of it?"
Megavolt didn't reply right away. "Payback." he finally said.
Bushroot and Rowe fell silent and exchanged worried looks again.
"Megs," Bushroot began again, "Really, you aren't going to..."
"Shush, I'm trying to think here." Megavolt interrupted cutting him short. He stared out the window for a moment longer. "I need access to the records of everyone in the city. Do you guys know where I could find such records?"
"Well, I know they've got stuff like that at the police station, but they'll never you look at them, Megs." Rowe said, rubbing the back of his head.
"Negaduck probably has a few himself, but not on everyone in the city." Bushroot said. "Besides, how do you even know this Mallard guy is even still in St. Canard? It's been years since you where in high school."
"Just a hunch." Megavolt admitted. "Granted it might..."
He trailed off suddenly as a memory suddenly came to his mind.
"Ah, Megavolt? I present the awesome, super secret, Darkwing Tower!"
"Cool! Audubon Bay Bridge!"
"Huh? Oh, well, uh, that's just, uh, a simple hologram to fool outsiders. Pay it no attention."
"Yeah right." Megavolt muttered under his breath.
"What?" Bushroot asked, still lost.
But then Megavolt straightened with realization. "That's it!" he exclaimed, and turned and ran for the door.
"Now where are you going, mate?" Rowe asked.
"To the one person who'd have what I'd need!" Megavolt exclaimed, not looking back as he ran out the door of the room.
"Who?" Bushroot asked, as he and Rowe followed him.
"Darkwing Duck!" Megavolt exclaimed, running down the staircase leading to the bottom floor.
Bushroot and Rowe both skidded to a halt, and this time didn't bother trying to follow Megavolt.
"Maybe Megavolt getting his memories back wasn't such a good thing after all." Rowe remarked.
"Oh no, this isn't good!" Bushroot said, grabbing at his pedal-like hair. "If Megavolt goes blabbing to Darkwing about all of this, he's not only risking himself, but the security of the gang!"
"So what should we do, mate?" Rowe asked. "Go after him? Try and stop him?"
Bushroot thought for a moment. "No, we'd risk ourselves as well if we get caught by Darkwing." he said. "We can't do it alone. We'd need help." he thought for a moment longer. "As much as I hate to admit it, Rowe, but we need to tell Negaduck what's happened."
As night fell, a storm rolled in from the sea, blowing darkly over St. Canard, engulfing the city in a mist of water droplets as the rain started to fall, thick and heavy. Standing at the window of Darkwing Tower, Crimson stared out at the poor weather.
"It's going to be real fun going out on patrol in this weather." she remarked.
"Well, we don't have to worry about that just yet." Darkwing said, sitting in the command chair below the big screen. "We aren't going anywhere until we get that priority call from SHUSH that J. Gander told me to expect."
"Any idea how much longer it'll be, DW?" Launchpad asked, walking up.
"Not a clue, LP, just that the message will come sometime tonight." Darkwing said. "J. Gander said he was going to try and not make us wait too long though, so I think it'll come at any moment."
"Just so long as Hooter's quick about it, I won't complain." Crimson said, joining them. "I have a feeling something is going to happen tonight."
"It's probably just the weather, Crimson, rain tends to make one think dark thoughts." Techno remarked, sitting at one of the smaller computers that encircled the platform, working on a project of some sort. "Besides, this tele-meeting is important. Director Hooter is going to introduce Agent Grizzlikof's replacement tonight."
"He's not an agent anymore, Techno." Darkwing pointed out. "He resigned peacefully, and..."
He was cut short when a beeping sound rang out. Darkwing quickly spun around in his seat and slapped the coinciding button. The SHUSH logo quickly appeared on the screen as the transmission started to connect. Waving everyone over, they waited for a moment. Finally, Hooter's face appeared on the screen.
Darkwing promptly noted he seemed crestfallen, and understood why. No one expected Grizzlikof to betray SHUSH and be a spy to Jones of all people, but Hooter probably took it the hardest. The two agents had worked together for quite awhile now, it was heartbreaking to see that relationship end that way.
But at least Grizzlikof acknowledged he had made a huge mistake, having regretted his choice to join Jones's side reportedly almost immediately, but it was too late to back out. As he had been in the midst of telling Techno, Grizzlikof selected immediate, but quiet, resigning over court martial, and was choosing to treat it like retirement. He then peacefully packed up and went back to his native land of Russia, being observed by SHUSH agents in case he attempted to rejoin Jones's forces.
The couple of weeks that followed going from the end of October into the beginning of November was spent debating over who would replace Grizzlikof's role as SHUSH second in command. Vice President Norrin quickly put together a whole list of people he would like to see to take the role, but it was quickly seen that Norrin simply intended to use one of those people as puppets to better control SHUSH should one of them be selected. Hooter had his own ideas of who he wanted to fill Grizzlikof's shoes that conflicted with Norrin's list anyway.
Finally, after spending much time debating the matter, Hooter finally announced to Darkwing the day before that he himself had selected the replacement and had gotten Norrin's authorization (but not necessarily approval) to go ahead. He wished to introduce the replacement to Darkwing and the others as soon as possible and tonight had been selected.
Now, they got to find out who the replacement was going to be.
"Hello, Darkwing, sorry to keep you waiting." Hooter said in his usual joyful tones despite everything.
"No problem at all, J. Gander, they delay keeps us that much longer out of the rain." Darkwing remarked. "So? What's the verdict? Who's the replacement?"
Hooter nodded. "Darkwing, I would like to introduce Agent Henry Grant." he said, and then moved off screen.
Another face appeared, this one belonging to a slender, handsome, young duck who couldn't be much older than twenty five. He had dark, nearly black, hair that hung long, but was neatly trimmed to not hang lower than his eyebrows. Upon seeing Darkwing and the others on the screen, he grinned.
"Good evening!" Grant said. "Yes, I am the new 'replacement' as you say. I'm greatly looking forward to working with you and your team, Darkwing. I've looked through your file, and I must say I'm quite impressed."
"You are?" Darkwing beamed.
"Of course, there are one or two things that seem a bit...outside the box, but we can address that later." Grant went on. He looked at everyone else. "You'll have to forgive me, I'm still playing catch up, so I don't know you all by name."
"Uh, yes, well, you know me." Darkwing remarked. "This is the Crimson Avenger, that's Techno and that's Launchpad, my sidekick and pilot."
"Very pleased to meet all of you." Grant remarked. "I hope I can meet all of your expectations by taking on this role. I'm going to try and be your ally and not your enemy."
"Well, that's good, we could always use another ally." Crimson remarked, grinning.
"Indeed." Techno commented, still sitting at the computer he had been working on, but turned away so he could be a part of the conversation. "If I had a nickel for every villain we've encountered."
"Tell me, though." Darkwing said to Grant. "Now that you're essentially a part of the team, just what are your opinions on some of the troubles we face today?"
"I was hoping you'd ask, Darkwing." Grant said. "I've been giving the matter some thought, and I think I've got you an answer. If I could just borrow a few more moments of your time..."
"Go right ahead." Darkwing said, leaning back in his chair a shooting a quick glance out the window at the rainy night. "Admittedly, I'd rather be here where it's dry at the moment, anyway."
Darkwing then returned his attention back to the screen as Grant began a discussion on his interpretation on SHUSH policies. But if he had watched a moment longer, he would've seen as the lightning flashed a few seconds later, a figure silhouetted in the window, silently watching...
"He did WHAT?" Negaduck exclaimed, jumping up from his seat.
"We don't know just what he's done exactly, just what we think he's going to do." Bushroot pointed out nervously.
"That doesn't change the seriousness of the matter, Bushy!" Negaduck stated. "So did he, or did he not, do it?"
Bushroot and Rowe shot each other glances, a ritual that was rapidly becoming a habit.
"Well..." Rowe began slowly, "...Megs did say he was going to Darkwing for help..."
"The KNOB!" Negaduck exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air angrily. "Of all the people to go to..." he paused. "Wait. For help? He went to Darkwing for help?"
"That's what he was indicating he'd do." Bushroot admitted.
"May I ask why?" Negaduck inquired harshly.
"He was looking for someone." Rowe said. "Nobody we know, at least not that I know of. Though, I will admit the mate's name sounds vaguely familiar, like I read it somewhere..."
"Who?" Negaduck repeated.
"Someone named Drake Mallard." Bushroot said.
Negaduck's only reaction was a single blink, and a moment's silence. His expression never changed, so it was impossible to gauge his reaction, but both Rowe and Bushroot sensed Negaduck knew the name better than they did.
"Did Megavolt say why he wanted to find this person?" Negaduck finally asked.
"Yes and no." Bushroot said. "He wasn't exactly forthcoming on details."
"He did say he knew this guy in high school, though, if that helps." Rowe offered.
"High school?" Negaduck repeated, this time genuinely looking surprised.
"Yeah, er, we had a little accident at the greenhouse, and Megs got a rather nasty shock from it." Bushroot explained nervously. "It seems to have given his brain a reboot, because shortly there afterward, Megavolt started remembering everything he's ever forgotten."
Negaduck shook his head and started pacing, stepping out from around his desk. "Should've known that could've caused problems had that ever happened." he muttered under his breath.
"What was that, mate?" Rowe asked, half-hearing the mutterings.
"When did you last see Megavolt?" Negaduck asked.
"Just under an hour ago." Bushroot said. "We were at his hideout at the time, discussing this matter."
"Then he just ran off, saying Darkwing was the only person who could help him." Rowe added.
"So either he has figured out more than we've given him credit for, or he doesn't realize where this is going to lead him." Negaduck said, more to himself than anything.
"Aye, trouble." Rowe stated.
"More than that, Rowe." Negaduck said, and after pausing for a moment, headed to the office door. "I'm going to stop him."
"What?" Bushroot asked, following. "You sure that's a good idea, Negs? Megavolt could already have confronted Darkwing, and who knows what could've happened from there!"
"I'm aware of the risks, Bushroot, more than even you realize." Negaduck said as he opened the office door and stepped out. "I know exactly what will happen if Megs gets caught, which is exactly why I need to act now to stop him and prevent a big mess from falling down on all of our heads."
"All of our heads, mate?" Rowe repeated, puzzled. "Why? Just how serious is this matter?"
"Serious enough." Negaduck said, passing NegaGosalyn who stood not far from the door, awaiting a verdict. "Gos, I'm heading out to stop a mess before it happens, you hold down the fort in the meantime."
"Got it." NegaGosalyn replied. Negaduck nodded, and continued onward, Bushroot and Rowe still following.
"I don't get it, Negs." Bushroot said. "You act like you know something about this that the rest of us don't."
"That's not true, NegaCrimson would appreciate the seriousness of this matter if I ever told her." Negaduck remarked.
"So you do know something more." Rowe realized.
"All I'm going to say on the matter you two twits is that it's very important that Darkwing does not find out that Megavolt is looking for Drake Mallard." Negaduck said.
"Why?" Bushroot asked. "Just who is Drake Mallard?"
Negaduck paused, debating how he should reply. "An acquaintance." he finally said.
Then he turned and left, exiting their warehouse hideout and out into the rain, leaving a very puzzled Bushroot and Rowe behind...
Megavolt watched silently as the occupants within the tower went about their business, the transmission they had gathered around to be a part of having since ended, and now they prepared to leave, most likely to go out on patrol. Rain pattered thick and heavy on Megavolt's back, seeping through the yellow fabric of his jumpsuit, but he ignored it.
Normally rain was a real problem for him, because the falling droplets of water usually caused him to short out. However, as soon as he became aware that a storm was in the process of overshadowing St. Canard, he quickly discharged as much of the electrical energy stored within as he dared, not to the point that he was left weak and lethargic, but low enough that he wasn't at risk of shorting out, as he could safely store small amounts of electrical energy in water without the two reacting badly.
He ran a risk doing this, though, because by doing this, he lost his ability to use several of his trademark attacks. If anyone caught him here and reacted accordingly, Megavolt would be virtually defenseless. He was confident though that he could pull this plan off without it coming to that, though.
It seemed Darkwing and the others disliked the rain as much as Megavolt, for they all went to great lengths to equip themselves to stay dry. Finally, they were ready, and they left to go on patrol, using varying modes of transportation. They did not see Megavolt as they left. Silence fell. Darkwing Tower was now empty.
Megavolt examined the frame of the window he stood perched in, checking for many security measures. There was one, a simple one, and with a snip of a wire, Megavolt had it disabled. Too easy, clearly Darkwing didn't expect anybody to try and break into Darkwing Tower and steal anything.
But Megavolt hoped to leave everything as he had found it once he had done, and leave little trace he had even been here. Carefully sliding the window open, Megavolt slipped into the vacant Tower with a thump. Shaking droplets of water from off of him, he looked around quickly to double check everything was clear, and then moved towards the central platform in the tower. It contained the super computer, and the super computer, he predicted, contained exactly what he would need.
Sitting down in the command chair, Megavolt brought the supercomputer out of screensaver, and told it to bring up it's desktop. But instead, a window appeared with a box in it on the big screen. Above it was a sentence of words, which read: "Security code required. Please type it in box below."
Megavolt frowned, as he obvious did not know what the security code would be. But he did have a way around it. Gently placing his fingers over the controls to the computer, he released a very low level electrical shock into the system, one that would leave any physical damage behind. But it interfered with the systems for a moment. The screen flickered, and then the box vanished, and the desktop came up without any code of code having ever been entered.
Grinning, Megavolt now scanned through the files and programs the supercomputer contained. Finding a search program, he pulled it up, and typed the words "Drake Mallard" into the box and hit enter. The computer thought for a moment as it searched for any matches, and then it pulled up exactly what Megavolt wanted. A current picture of Drake Mallard appeared on one side of the screen while a lengthy text talking about the person appeared on the other side.
Megavolt focused on the picture for a moment, tilting his head. It was the Drake he remembered all right, but he certainly had changed. He was slightly taller (but still short), he had gone pretty much bald, he wore a different, more up to date outfit, and bore a rather fatherly complexion about him. Megavolt got deja vu looking at him, reminded of the little time he knew Drake all those years ago.
And yet, he sensed there was something else he knew about Drake...something more recent...
Pushing the thought from his brain, Megavolt turned to the text, and skimmed through it. Every part he read only further confirmed that this was indeed the Drake Mallard he was looking for. He attended St. Canard High School in the seventies, was native to St. Canard, attended a few terms of college at Westcott University, but ultimately didn't graduate. Drake had even been noted in public that he was a person who tried to help (although not always successfully).
Then there were other details that Megavolt did not know. On the top of the list was the fact that Drake Mallard had vanished for seven years, from 1995 to 2002, and it was never publically announced why, the police keeping the official report under wraps for unknown reasons. He had a small criminal record, all charges later being dropped for one reason or another. He wasn't married, but he had a daughter, adopted, by the name of Gosalyn Mallard, now in her teenage years. He had adopted her when she was nine years old, and...
"Please, I know you, you're the Darkwing Duck Fan Club!"
--
"I'm almost finished with this stupid floor, dad!"
"Ahem, of course you mean 'dad' in the figurative sense, little girl who is no way related to me."
Megavolt blinked as he suddenly made a connection. "No." he said. "No, that can't be right."
He cleared his search, and now typed in Gosalyn Mallard. Like before, her picture and profile appeared instantly on the screen. Megavolt glanced at the picture, winced as he was further proven that he could be right, and quickly started reading through the attached profile, looking for clues.
See, he remembered Gosalyn, remembered that she was frequently around when he fought Darkwing years and years ago. At first, he thought little of it, always presuming that Gosalyn was simply a very dedicated fan of Darkwing's that followed him everywhere. Hence the first memory that came to mind. It was the second memory that caused a logic issue.
"Gosalyn called Darkwing dad." he muttered as he read. "Now if that's true, then that means..."
Not finding the information he wanted, he printed off a copy of the photo of Gosalyn. Once it had slipped out of the nearby printer, Megavolt grabbed the paper, pulled out a marking pen, and drew a wide-brimmed hat, a mask, and a cape on the picture of Gosalyn. He held up the finished product with a sigh.
"...she's the Crimson Avenger." Megavolt said. "Which means Drake is..."
"Ha- ha! Darkwing Duck is Drake the Dweeb? Too funny!"
--
"I may have lost, but at least I know Darkwing Duck's secret identity! He's Elmo Sputterspark! No wait, that's not right, he's um...."
"...Drake Mallard." Megavolt said, and stood up sharply. "I've known that all this time? And I did nothing about it just because I couldn't remember? Curse my stupid memory! Seeing he knew who I was, I should've..." he suddenly froze. "Wait. Darkwing knows who I am. He has for even longer than I knew. But...then...why? He promised he'd be there to help me. He could've helped me turn my life around! We both could've avoided all of this! But he didn't! He didn't, didn't, didn't!"
He crumpled up the picture of Gosalyn in his hands and hurled it across the room, then kicked a nearby waste basket and did a little mad dance in rage until he wore himself out. Panting, he glumly stared at his feet.
"He ignored me." he said softly. "He ignored me like everyone else in the world. I thought he was going to be my friend, the first I ever really had. But I guess not."
Sadly, he pressed a button on the control panel that cleared the big screen of any evidence of his search and put the supercomputer back on screen saver. He then walked across the tower back to the window he had opened. Once there, he glanced back at the empty hideout.
"No wonder we're enemies, Darkwing." Megavolt muttered softly to himself, and then clambered back out the window and into the rain, quickly vanishing from sight...
He wandered aimlessly through the rainy night after that, getting soaked to the bone. Megavolt didn't care. Once he arrived at a dry spot, the heat from a quick recharge would dry him off. For now he just dealt with it. He didn't have the mood nor energy to do anything else. He was too depressed with the knowledge that Drake Mallard was Darkwing Duck, someone he had hoped was a friend, but was clearly wasn't. It angered him and saddened him at the same time, but he didn't feel like doing anything about it at the moment.
Eventually his aimless wanderings led him home to his hideout. Wearily, he stepped in out of the rain, closed the door behind him. Shaking off the excess rainwater, Megavolt then drew in a large amount of replenishing electrical energy from his surroundings, then wandered over to the window to stare out at the rain, leaning heavily on the windowsill.
"You were out pretty late tonight, Sparky."
Megavolt turned around in time to see Negaduck reveal himself from the shadows, wearing a neutral expression. Megavolt narrowed his eyes at him.
"Don't call me Sparky." he wined, then turned away from Negaduck. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you right now anyway, Negs."
"Tough." Negaduck said, leaning against the wall beside the window. "You're going to hear me out. Because I heard today that you fixed your memory problem."
Megavolt glanced at him in surprise. "How did you find out about that?"
"Bushroot and Rowe told me."
"The traitors."
"Hardly. They're just concerned for your well being, Megsy. You haven't been acting quite yourself since you regained access to those lost memories of yours."
"Like you really care though."
"True, under any other circumstances, I merely think of you as a knob, always getting under foot." Negaduck said, circling Megavolt now. "But I care now. Because there's something else Bushy and Rowe told me. Something about a certain name you remember..."
Megavolt gave him a glare, but didn't say anything.
"I happen to know who this Drake Mallard guy is." Negaduck continued. "You won't like him, Megs, no matter what it is about him that you remember. You should stay anyway from him. That sound good?"
Megavolt avoided eye contact, and didn't reply. Negaduck narrowed his eyes and whipped out a knife, pointing it menacingly at Megavolt.
"Right?" he growled, using the flat of the blade to lift up Megavolt's chin.
Unafraid, Megavolt nodded, still glaring.
"Good." Negaduck said, removing the knife and turning to leave. "Have a good night, Megavolt."
Megavolt watched him walk across the room, then turned away for a moment. Before he knew it, he was suddenly speaking again.
"Darkwing Duck is Drake Mallard."
Negaduck froze.
"And if he's Drake Mallard, then you're the Drake Mallard from the Negaverse, meaning NegaCrimson is Gosalyn Mallard from the Negaverse. So that's why you're always calling her Gos..."
The knife suddenly embedded itself besides Megavolt's head. Negaduck then grabbed him from behind and whirled him around.
"You aren't supposed to know that!" he roared in Megavolt's face.
"I got that, Negs." Megavolt said defiantly. "And you know that makes you vulnerable."
"I could kill you right now." Negaduck growled.
"Still doesn't change the fact that I know." Megavolt said. "What can you do about it?"
Negaduck slammed him into a wall. "No one should know either of our secret identities particularly a knob like you." he growled. "You let that knowledge slip and we will have a real mess for the both of us."
"Well, I know better to use it against you." Megavolt said simply.
Negaduck was way ahead of him. "You lay one finger on Darkwing..." he began.
"You'll what?" Megavolt spat. "I thought you wanted Darkwing defeated."
"I do, but by me personally!" Negaduck said. "You aren't me!"
"This is the best way to do it, and you know it." Megavolt said. "Why haven't you ever taken advantage of that?"
"Because people aren't as stupid as they look, Sparky." Negaduck said. "If I reveal Darkwing for who he is, I could get my goose cooked as well!"
"Then let me do it." Megavolt said. "I can hide the connection, and you know it."
Negaduck was silent for a moment, seething. "I know." he said. "That's what I'm afraid of. Besides, me and Dipwing have an unspoken agreement that we attack each other on the professional level only. That means with the mask on. If any of us attack him while the mask is off..."
"He can't do anything if he's beaten." Megavolt pointed out.
Negaduck was silent for another moment, then he released Megavolt with a flourish. "No." he persisted. "You leave Drake Mallard alone, Megs, or so help me, I'll see to it that you get it."
And with that, he stomped out of the room, slamming the door shut behind him. Megavolt stared at the shut door for a long moment, folding his arms.
"But you forget." he said aloud. "I have my own score to settle with Darkwing..."
"Chew twenty times before swallowing, Gosalyn."
"Oh, c'mon dad, I'm going to be late."
"Oh, no, I've seen you drive that motorcycle of yours. Much too fast. You won't be late."
"So you'd rather encourage me to drive faster than the speed limit."
"Oh, er, um, see, what I was really trying to say was...er..."
"Yeah, I thought as much."
Gosalyn shoveled the last of her breakfast into her mouth and then hopped up from the table, swinging her backpack onto her back. "See ya later Dad." she said.
"Bye Gos, have a good day at school." Drake said, sipping his orange juice as he thumbed through the paper.
Gosalyn could be heard exiting the house and stepping into the garage. A few moments later, the sound of a motorcycle revving and driving away drowned out everything else. Drake rolled his eyes, still not happy about the idea of Gosalyn driving a motorbike, but knew that he couldn't argue with her about the matter anymore.
"Hey DW, whatcha got planned for today?" Launchpad asked, as he stepped into the room, helping himself to the stack of toast that sat in the middle of the table, free game for anyone.
"I have a few errands around town I need to do." Drake replied, folding up his newspaper and checking his watch. "I should get started on that here soon, too, by the way. After that I intend to head home and take a nap." he stood up a stretched. "How about you, LP? What do you have planned for today?"
"Oh, nothing much." Launchpad said. "I was thinking about going over to the tower and giving the Thunderquack a tuneup. Then I might mosey on back here to catch the latest episode of Jumpgate: Universitas around noon. Gos then has a soccer game this afternoon that I want to see."
"Oh yes, I need to remember to go to that." Drake said, making a mental note. He picked up his car keys and his shopping list. "Well, I need to get going. See you later, LP."
"See you later, DW." Launchpad replied.
Drake stepped out to the family car and climbed into it. Turning the key in the ignition, he started the car, backed out of the driveway, and was soon on his way. As he drove, he switched on the radio and listened to his favorite station, singing along to the music. Eventually, he arrived in the metropolis section of St. Canard, driving past the tall skyscrapers. Grinning, Drake drove along, not suspecting anything.
Then a loud thump rang out as something heavy landed on the roof of the car. Drake glanced up award in puzzlement, looking around for some explanation to the sound. Not finding any, Drake looked for a place to pull over for a further investigation. But then a head suddenly poked into view, dangling in front of the windshield.
"Surprise!" Megavolt yelled dementedly.
Yelping, Drake swerved the car as if he expected that to get rid of Megavolt, but the rat hung on tightly to the roof of the car. When Drake realized swerving wasn't helping and stopped, Megavolt did a flip in the air as he jumped from the roof of the car and landed on the hood facing Drake.
"Hiya!" he exclaimed, throwing a punch at the windshield, which cracked under the impact.
Drake yelped again, and started swerving again, leaning over to peer through the cracked glass.
"Get out of here!" Drake yelled at Megavolt, reaching for the gear shift.
A well aimed bolt of electricity from Megavolt snapped the gear shift handle off, shattering the windshield in the process. Drake stared at the broken handle in his hand for a moment before Megavolt grabbed him by the front of the shirt and brought him close.
"I'm not leaving until I've done what I came here to do, Drake." Megavolt said. "Or should I say...Darkwing Duck."
Drake's eyes went wide. Megavolt threw him to one side of the cab. With no driver, the car veered off to one side and brushed against the side of another car. Dodging another bolt from Megavolt, Drake fumbled over to the driver's side of the car again and tried to regain control of the car. As he did so, he pulled out a spare gas gun from the glove compartment and fired off a couple cartridges at Megavolt.
Megavolt dodged most of them. One of the canisters clipped the edge of the broken windshield and burst into a cloud of smoke, but the air blowing past the speeding vehicle blew it all away before it could do anything. Megavolt took aim to fired off another bolt of electricity at Drake.
Panicking, Drake slammed his foot on the gas pedal, the car lurching forward. Caught off guard, Megavolt stumbled forward, throwing off his aim and shooting a bolt of electricity into the hood of the car before he slammed into the roof of the cab. Flipping up onto the roof, he slid down it to the back of the car and started to fall off. Quickly, Megavolt grabbed a handhold and stopped his fall, his feet dragging against the road behind the car.
Meanwhile, the car's sudden burst of speed caused it to bump into the back of a car ahead of it. Drake quickly dropped speed and drove around and ahead of the vehicle, honking his horn loudly to tell the other cars to get out of the way. He had almost forgotten about Megavolt until he heard a zap from behind as Megavolt fired a blind electric bolt through the back window and hit the roof's interior, punching a hole through both. Drake turned to look at him, gripping his gas gun tightly.
"How did you figure out who I am?" he shouted at Megavolt.
"Let's just say that getting your memory back in it's entirety has it advantages!" Megavolt called back, then fired another bolt at Drake.
It hit smashed through the back window, shattering it this time, and blasted the headrest to the driver's chair. Drake ducked, then fired off another canister of gas at Megavolt. It fell short of it's target, bursting within the car, but unlike the ones before, this was somewhat effective as the resulting cloud of smoke was blown out of the car into Megavolt's face. He vanished from view for a moment, then reappeared outside one of the side windows in the back of the car. He fired another bolt of electricity at Drake, narrowly missing him and hitting the dials and gages in the car's dashboard.
"You promised to be there to help me!" Megavolt yelled, firing more bolts in anger. "But you didn't! Feel sorry now, Drake?"
Drake switched attachments on the gas gun a fired a volley of shock darts at Megavolt. They all missed their target, some embedding themselves in the interior side of the car, but Megavolt was forced to move. He slipped back to the back of the car, then to the other side. While the car somehow continued on it's course even without a driver, Drake threw open the driver's side door and leaned out, firing canisters of sleeping gas at Megavolt. Megavolt shot down most of them, but the most he could do was hang on and dodge.
Then, suddenly, his eyes went wide in surprise, and he quickly moved to hang from the back of the car again. Puzzled, Drake looked ahead of the car to see a large truck, it's horn blaring, zoom towards the car, close enough to clip the vehicle. Drake quickly threw himself back into the cab.
The car jerked as it's side dragged against the truck's side as both drove past each other, the still-open driver's side door getting snapped off it's hinges in the process. Once the truck had passed and Drake regained control of the vehicle, he looked behind him for Megavolt, only to find that he wasn't there anymore.
Drake had just enough time to hope that maybe Megavolt had finally left, or possibly fallen off, before a bolt of electricity shot through the roof of the car, followed by three more, all dangerously close to Drake's position. Megavolt was on the roof again. Drake let go of the steering wheel to try and come up with a counterattack, but by doing so, allowed the car to veer to the right and off the road. He looked at his new course in time to see the car slam, nose first, into a fire hydrant and knock it loose, releasing a spray of water in the air. The car slammed to a stop, and the air bags deployed, slamming Drake back into his seat.
Megavolt, upon seeing where the car was going to end up, quickly jumped off the roof before impact and grabbed a hold of a nearby streetlight, hanging from it for a moment. He then jumped down, laughed, and ran off. Drake got out of the ruined car just in time to see Megavolt duck into an alley. He shook his head and sighed.
"This isn't good." he stated.
"Ha! I did it!" Megavolt whooped as he ran, breathless away from the fight scene. "Well, I haven't beaten Darkwing yet, but I'm well on my way!" he laughed. "It feels so...so..." he paused, slowing to stop, "...empty."
He shook his head. "No, no, no, this is right." he persisted. "What I'm doing is right. Drake abandoned me, leaving me to fend life for myself. Just like everyone else in the world, except he had the gall to make me think otherwise. That he would be different from the rest of the world."
He kicked at can that was lying in the ally, and then, not satisfied with just that, zapped the can with a well aimed electric bolt.
"I didn't complete my goals this time, but that's all right." Megavolt said. "I'll go away and make him sweat, wonder when I'll come back to finish him off. Because I'll be back. I'm going to get my revenge on Darkwing, on Drake Mallard, on them both, payback on both of them leaving me in the dust, to fend for myself." he narrowed his eyes. "I won't rest until I've completed that goal.
And with that, he started running again, heading towards his hideout again. What he didn't realize, though, was that he was being watched from a nearby rooftop by a figure in a cape and a hat. When Megavolt continued running, she left to report what she knew to her superior...
By the time the police and the medics had arrived at the site of the crashed car, there was little they could do but clean up. The medics checked Drake over to find that he was okay, and the police officers, none of them ones Drake knew personally, asked him some questions. Drake explained the generals of the situation, but naturally didn't tell them everything. For all they knew, Megavolt had for some reason decided to pick on this poor persecuted citizen.
But Drake knew there was more to it than that, and that was what worried him. Once the medics had finished and left the police began supervising the clean up of the wreck, Drake went to a payphone across the street from the wreck and dialed the number to Gosalyn's cell phone. He tried several times, but it wasn't until about fifteen minutes into the attempt that Gosalyn finally picked up.
"What is it that was so important that it couldn't wait fifteen minutes?" Gosalyn exclaimed the moment she picked up. "I was still in a class up until a minute ago! I can't answer my cell phone in the middle of class!"
"Gos, it's me." Drake said patiently.
"I kinda figured that, Dad." Gosalyn replied hotly. "But I ask again, what couldn't wait fifteen minutes?"
"There was an accident, Gos." Drake explained.
"An accident?" Gosalyn asked. "What kind of accident?"
"A car accident that I was in."
"Keen gear...are you all right Dad? Are you hurt?"
"No, thankfully, I wasn't seriously hurt beyond a few bruises. But the car's totaled."
"Drat! I liked that car." a pause. "How bad is the damage?"
"Well, it slammed into a fire hydrant, so it's nose is toast, among other things."
"Among other things? What other things?"
Drake hesitated, wondering how he could securely say this. "Gos, this was a special kind of accident, in which it didn't involve any other vehicles." he explained.
"So...how did you wreck?" Gosalyn asked, sounding lost.
"I was attacked, and lost control of the car, long story short."
"You were attacked? By who?"
Drake again hesitated for a moment. "By Megavolt." he finally admitted. "Gos, he knows who I am."
Megavolt kept running with the goal of heading to his hideout, in a properly vengeful mood now, and ducked into yet another ally to use as a short cut. But he skidded to a halt when he discovered that his path was cut off by the rest of the Fearsome Five.
"Hold it, Megs." Negaduck, who stood in the front of the group, said. "We need to talk."
Megavolt glanced at his compatriots in puzzlement, silently asking what was going on. Bushroot, Rowe, and even NegaGosalyn, however, all avoided eye contact. Quackerjack met his eyes for a moment, but then silently hung his head.
"Guys?" Megavolt prompted. "What's going on?"
"Oh, you know what's up, Megs." Negaduck growled.
He was right. He did.
"Look, as I see it, this was the best way to defeat Dark..." Megavolt began to explain.
"You were specifically told to leave Drake Mallard alone, and yet you disobeyed." Negaduck said. "Now I have to make good on my threat, although I wish I didn't have to. You have your uses, Megavolt."
"Well, that's all that I seem to be good for, isn't it?" Megavolt asked angrily. "Just another tool for people like you to take advantage of!"
"That's enough, Megavolt!" Negaduck interrupted. "You were given a warning and you failed to go through with it!"
"So what are you going to do?" Megavolt demanded.
"Well, first off, I'm kicking you out of the Fearsome Five." Negaduck stated. "Not so bad, considering, because now we're genuinely back to five members."
"Kicked out?" Megavolt asked. "You're kicking me out?"
"For starters." Negaduck said with a careless shrug. "You should know that now that I've done that, you're an official enemy to the Fearsome Five, starting now."
"What?" Megavolt asked. "Guys, you can't go along with this!"
His fellow partners in crime avoided eye contact though.
"Sorry, Megs." Bushroot remarked.
Megavolt simply stared at him in shock.
"It's not so bad, Megavolt." Negaduck continued. "If you just keep your distance from us, nothing bad will happen. But you have to actually get away first. Right now you're too close. We'll attack you if you don't get going."
Megavolt just started at him ludicrously. Negaduck sighed, and glanced at his watch.
"Tell you what, I'm going to count to five." he said. "If you haven't gone by that time, I'll have NegaCrimson here..." he motioned to NegaGosalyn, who reluctantly raised her P90 to take aim at Megavolt, "...shoot you down in cold blood."
"In cold blood?" Megavolt repeated. "Don't you..."
"One." Negaduck began.
"But can't I have..."
"Two."
"But..."
"Three."
Megavolt gulped, then, giving his former team one last glance, turned and ran back the way he had come, heading for the exit to the alley.
"Four."
Negaduck glanced at NegaGosalyn again, who nodded that she was ready. Negaduck watched Megavolt for a moment as he ran, nearing the exit to the alley but hadn't reached it yet.
"Five."
To Be Continued.
