Chapter 10 - The Other Bin of Scrooge McDuck Part 2
As Lena and I looked around, Webby suggested to do some more research, before we would get lost in the Bin. Just as she started to turn around, Magica appeared and threateningly shook her head. Lena grabbed Webby by her shoulder just in time, before she could see the shadow. ,,So, it's a little bigger than we thought." I immediately joined in to help her. ,,It's still worth it to find the dime." ,,Fine. But we need to take some time to figure out which door to open." Lena didn't listen and went to a door that Magica was pointing at and opened it.
The sight surprised us all. Inside the room, there stood a tall unicorn. It was surrounded by rainbows and clouds and an overall colorful landscape. ,,Why is Scrooge hiding a frilly Unicorn?" Lena asked, a bit confused. Though, Webby didn't listen anymore. She gasped excitedly. Well, she was still a little girl. ,,Swordhorse", she said, with enthusiasm. Wait what? Lena and I looked a the unicorn with terrified eyes, as it suddenly didn't look so friendly anymore and got into position to attack. When it began to sprint towards us to skewer us with its horn, we started to scream and jumped out of the way. Lena and I jumped away opposite from each other, while Webby ran towards a ladder, that led up to
a railing. But Webby couldn't get further than half the length of the ladder, before the Unicorn rammed it and broke it into two pieces. She fell down and onto the back of the Unicorn. It didn't affect her excitement level in the slightest, as she started to cheer.
The Unicorn, on the other hand, didn't like it one bit and started to lunge out, in hopes of getting rid of Webby. Who seemed to have the time of her life. ,,Someone's wearing her crazy pants today", Magica commented, as she watched the racket, dumbfounded. Agree to disagree, I'd say. ,,C'mon, let's ditch her and find the Dime", she said, as soon as the Unicorn succeeded in throwing Webby off and tried to skewer her with its horn. ,,We can't", Lena objected. ,,If I didn't know any better, I'd say you value your little sidekick over your own freedom", Magica retorted and gave Lena a distrusting look. ,,Oh, believe me, I would do anything to get you off my back, but without Webby we could be lost forever." Just in that moment, the unicorn tried to skewer Webby yet again. ,,Oh no! Webby, catch!" Lena called out and threw the Vesuvian Diamond Dagger out of reflex. Webby immediately caught it and parried. With the Dagger, Webby won the upper hand in the fight and could push the unicorn back to the door it came out of. She delivered one last kick, which made it fly into its room and we immediately closed the door.
The first of many possible dangers was mastered. ,,Okay, that was intense", Webby said, completely out of breath. Understatement of the century. ,,We should go back, develop a system, figure out where to look safely", she added. ,,A system? That could take months, we gotta find the Dime now, before Scrooge decides to take it back", Lena spilled, while she was already in the process of walking further into the Bin. I wanted to follow her, but we got stopped by Webby. ,,Why? What's the hurry? Follow-up question: Where did you get a Diamond Dagger from anyway?" She pointed at the Dagger, that she still held in her hand. Magica appeared on the wall behind her and gestured to us, that we should keep quiet. My gaze fell on the numbers above every door. ,,Hey, look! Mysteries!" I pointed at the numbers above the door of the door of the unicorn. Webby's attention immediately sprung to the numbers and she completely forgot what she had asked us a few seconds ago. ,,6456", she read them out loud.
Suddenly, she gasped as if a metaphorical light turned on inside her head. ,,Or 6.4.56.!" ,,Yes, mhmm, numbers", Lena tried to hide, that she had no idea what Webby was trying to say. I felt the same. ,,They're dates! June 4th, 1956 the day Srooge captured the Swordhorse! And as you recall from today's lecture, the date Scrooge earned his Number One Dime was..." Webby tried to lead us to the right direction and waited for us to finish the sentence. Unfortunately, we both fell asleep during her presentation. Lena tried. ,,1940..." Luckily, she was soon interrupted by Webby. ,,1877!" we copied the last part, so she wouldn't realize that we really had no clue. Quickly, Webby grabbed our hands and dragged us with her.
,Here we go. 1877. Scrooge's Number One Dime", the little girl said, as we reached said door. Behind us, we could see Magica, who was pretty exited and couldn't wait to finally get her grasp on the Dime.
Lena and I approached the door and opened it. Just enough to look inside it through a small gap.
Indeed. There it was. Scrooge McDuck's Number One Dime. Quickly, we scurried inside and closed the door, mere inches away from Webby. Magica was euphoric about it and couldn't wait. We could hear Webby calling out for us from the outside.
Magica ordered for us to take the dime, as we approached it. The Dime was carefully placed on a red cushion, that laid on a pillar. It was surrounded by a moat, which was four inches deep. Before we got close to the Dime, Magica's shadow filled the entire room. We looked at each other, before Lena took the Dime.
Immediately, red lightning flickered inside the shadow. It started to consume Lena. Just when I wanted to come to her aid, the shadow had completely consumed her and two arms came from her chest. Magica was separating herself from Lena. And that is exactly what we wanted, right? Not a second later, Magica towered above us, still in form of a shadow.
As soon as Magica was separated from Lena, Lena collapsed and I ran to her to help her up. ,,That felt good. With the Dime in my hands, nothing can stand in my way!" Magica called out and laughed maliciously.
That was the moment we realized, that this was our biggest mistake. Together, we sprinted to the door, but were soon stopped by magic. Magica pulled us close to her and grabbed us by our collars. ,,Wait. You deserve a hug", she turned to Lena, who had tears in her eyes.
Just then, we heard something hitting the ground and saw that Webby had cut a hole into the door with the Vesuvian Diamond Dagger. ,,A Diamond Dagger cuts through anything!" she exclaimed excitedly. Then she looked up. ,,Wait, what's going on? Is that...?" ,,Yup. A harbinger of your doom", Magica tried to scare her. Webby noticed, that the Dime wasn't on the cushion anymore. She screamed at Magica, that she should give back the Dime and attacked her with the Dagger. But it slid through the shadow like butter and didn't deal any damage.
Magica retreated and now stood behind Lena and I. ,,Lena, Marcel, run!" Webby called out to us and got in position to attack. ,,Why? They've been working for me", Magica couldn't resist and laid her hands on Lena's shoulders. I will never forget the look in Webby's eyes. First came the dismay, then the realization and then only pure pain was left. Lena and I couldn't take it anymore and looked away. That confirmed Magica's statement. She turned around and ran back out into the hall to call for Mr. McDuck. But she forgot about Magica. Immediately, the old witch shot a barrage of red magic at Webby, which consumed her fully and turned her into a small pink puppet. Shit, everything went downhill! Lena desperately called out for Webby, but was quickly interrupted by Magica. ,,She keeps baring in. We've gotta put a bell on her or something."
I had enough. I concentrated my magic into my rings, to keep Magica from causing more damage. But alas, she seemed to know what I wanted to do and before I could react, two shots of magic hit me. I got thrown across the room and hit the wall next to the door. My wrists were tied to the wall. I could do nothing against her. She was way too strong. I could neither mover nor could I use my own magic. It was crystal clear, that Magica had a lot more experience.
,,What are you doing?!" Lena yelled at Magica. ,,Exactly what you've been doing the whole time. Using her, pulling her strings. And I've always despised that other guy you call your friend", the old witch responded and gave me a despising look. ,,Here, let me demonstrate the delightful Irony." Her hand dove into the wall and made it's way over to Webby. Thin strings escaped her fingers and latched themselves onto the doll, as if she was the marionette of the cruel puppeteer, Magica DeSpell.
She let the doll float over to Lena. ,,Scrooge this, Scrooge that! Pink stuff! Hi, I'm Webster!" Magica imitated Webby's voice, though she did a bad job. ,,Her name is Webby!" Lena called out, her voice dripping with hate more than ever. ,,Who cares? I mean, you don't. You were just using her, right? Like a tool", Magica simply continued. She let Webby float around Lena in circles. Lena tried to dodge her, but she slipped and fell down onto the ground. She got up fast and took a few steps backwards. I had no other choice than to watch everything,still pinned against the wall.
,,What's the matter? Do you miss your friend? The slide ruler?" Magica wasn't phased at all by Lena's reaction and let the Webby Doll speak, as if she was praising the witch. She let the Doll float towards Lena, who took even more steps back. She eventually hit the door, right next to me. ,,Now, give me the Dime", Magica commanded her and let the doll open its hand right in front of Lena. ,,I'm not doing anything until you turn Webby back and free Marcel!" Lena rejected. That was definitely the right choice. Who knew what the old witch was capable of. ,,I'm sorry, I must've misheard you. Are you telling your master what to do?" Magica asked furiously. ,,Because that doesn't sound like someone who wants her freedom, does it, Wendy?" The doll shook its head.
,,Let's try this again." She simply threw Webby in a corner. Menacingly, she approached Lena and tried to take the Dime from her. ,,Give me the Dime", she said, her voice getting more and more threatening. Luckily, Lena still had her amulet, which was fueled by the same magic that Magica thrived on, which is why a protective field surrounded Lena, keeping Magica from causing any harm to her. ,,No! I'm not your puppet anymore!" Lena called out. ,,Is that so? Luckily, I have a spare!" the witch told her with malicious joy and picked up Webby again. She let the doll close its fist and approach Lena with frightening speed, fast enough to deliver a strong punch. Lena had to take a lot of hits, while the doll, this time with a perfect copy of Webby's voice, said hurtful things: ,,You're not my friend! You're a coward! A traitor!"
During that fight, I continued to try to free myself from Magica's grip, but that old witch was way too strong. I still could only helplessly watch. Lena slipped and fell down onto the piece of the door, that Webby had cut out. Her amulet started to glow, which made Lena continue to bring Webby back. ,,No, Webby, this isn't you!" But it was no use. ,,I know who you really are. A monster. Just like your aunt!" the doll screamed and flew towards Lena again. Without warning or anything commanding it to do so, the amulet activated itself and let out a enormous beam of pure magic, that consumed the doll and literally pulverized it. Only a burnt pink bow was left, that slowly sunk down to the floor. ,,Whoops. She gone", was the only thing Magica could say, as Lena started to scream painfully.
Then, we woke up.
We laid on the floor in the hall. Webby tried to wake us up. Without hesitation, we flung our arms around her neck. It felt so good to see her, still alive and well. Suddenly, we realized that we were still in danger. ,,where's the Dime?" I asked her. ,,There is no Dime. There never was", she responded and pointed into the room. We followed her finger and looked into the room, where we fought against Magica mere seconds ago. But instead of the pillar with the cushioned Dime, there was only a floating dream catcher. ,,The dream catcher. From the lecture. It sucked you into..." ,,My worst nightmare", Lena finished the sentence. ,,Aww, you were listening. To be exact, it must've gotten both of you at the same time and showed you what the worst nightmare for both of you would be", Webby added.
Lena and I looked at each other. We both knew that whatever happened in that dream, we cannot let that happen in the real world. Ever. ,,I got the code wrong. This one is 01.08.77. We need 1877. Come on", Webby tried to drag us with her. Lena gave me a short look and I nodded. ,,No, I'm done. Let's get out of here, before anything else bad happens." Together, we got back to the staircase. In the corner of my eye, I could see how Magica tried to hold on to something but failed miserably. Still a shadow, remember?
On the way to the staircase, Webby piped up. ,,You know, this was fun, but I'm kinda glad we stopped. I was a little nervous about the whole thing." ,,We know, and I'm sorry we forced you to do something you didn't wanna do", I apologized to her.
Just in that moment, Mr. McDuck came out of the room, that we wanted to walk past. ,,What the blazes are you three doing in here?" he asked, as soon as he spotted us. At first, we couldn't speak, until Webby looked up at the numbers above the door. 0001. ,,Oh, of course! The Number One Dime was in The Number One Chamber. Duh!" Her palm met her forehead. ,,No one thinks to check the first one", responded, with a slight smile. ,,But you shouldn't be checking at all! The Other Bin is far too dangerous", he added, a bit more upset this time. ,,It's on me. We wanted to see your Dime and we overheard you were keeping it in here and..." Lena tried to take cover for Webby, but was interrupted by her. ,,Sorry, Uncle Scrooge."
,,You should know by now, that if you wanted to know something, all you have to do is ask. Be straight with me, lassie. What if you were lost or hurt? Or eaten by the dragon", Mr. McDuck reprimanded her. Webby approached him and gave him a hug. It seemed to be enough to calm him down and they both went to the staircase. The only thing we could hear, was a ,,Oh man. There's a dragon in here?"
As soon as they were out of sight, Magica appeared. ,,Blegh. Now, listen to your aunt and grab the Dime! Grab the Dime! Grab the Dime!" she tried to get Lena to steal the Dime yet again. ,,No, family is supposed to help you, not hold you hostage!" Lena spat. ,,They'll turn on you. Call you a monster", Magica tried to convince her. ,,You're the monster here. And I know just the hunter to take you down." Lena started to run. Mr. McDuck and Webby were already halfway up. I followed her.
,,Mr. McDuck, there's something I need to tell you. My aunt is Ma..." Suddenly, a pitch black shadow scurried over her eyes and she didn't seem to be capable of speaking for a moment. I wanted to say something, but then she started to speak again. ,,mad...that..I..havem't..checked...in with her. I got to go." ,,Well, go on then, lass. Let's get you home to your family", Mr. McDuck responded and went up the last steps. I was too confused to properly react. Horrified, I watched as Lena couldn't move anymore and collapsed on the floor. Magica's shadow immediately entered her body, which turned Lena's eyes pitch black. ,,I didn't know I could do that. Neat! As the eclipse nears, my powers grow", she spoke with a mix of Lena's and her own voice.
Shit! Magica took control over Lena's body. ,,MR. MCDU..." I tried to call out for him, but a black shadow covered my mouth. My whole body was tied with shadows. ,,You shall not stand in my way ever again", Magica growled. Her eyes had gone back to Lena's usual dark eyes. This time, she spoke with Lena's voice.
As soon as she said that, I noticed my body getting heavier and I started to shrink. My spirit was forcefully thrown out of my body and I had to witness myself shrinking and turning into a hand-sized wooden figure. Magica took it an said: ,,You won't be able to cause me any inconveniences now." Then, she simply put it into her pocket and proceeded to follow the others.
Great. Lena was stuck in her own body. I was only a small wooden figure, that could only watch, but not intervene. And the Duck family was completely clueless what dangers were about to crash down on them. Who wold be able to beat Magica now?