Drake helped Draco over the hill as they made their way to the capitol.
"So you're the famous person who dethroned Zeral?", Draco asked.
Drake nodded.
"In the flesh."
Draco looked curious. What was under that golden mask the duck was wearing? In all the paintings and history books he had studied over his early years, it only showed him in his mask and not his face. Drake saw the expression and removed his mask to show his real face.
"So that is you?", Draco asked.
"Yeah.", Drake admitted, "This is who I really am."
Draco was surprised, but got over it quick. Zeral had things in mind and a faint sound of flaps caught his ears. Drake obviously heard that too cause he replaced his mask and got his hockey stick out.
"We're being hunted.", he said, "Get down!"
They ducked into a brush and quickly covered the branches over themselves as a shadow came across the land. It paused near their location and got bigger as the flaps got louder. With a loud thud, a large reptilian demon landed it's serpentine body on the ground and lowered it's horned head to the ground and sniffed a bit before slithering off.
"What is that?", Draco whispered.
"Shh!", hissed Drake, "It'll hear you."
They watched as the thing slithered beyond the hill and out of sight. Draco felt a sneeze coming on and Drake quickly put his arm under his nose to quiet the sneeze. At first nothing happened, but Drake didn't let go of his stick and it was a good thing he did cause the thing had come up behind them and would have taken a bite out of one of them if Drake hadn't jumped away with Draco as well. Draco pulled out his sword and was at Drake's side as the thing came out in a striking pose.
"What in the world is that?", Draco asked.
Drake's eyes narrowed.
"If I had to guess, Zeral made something to test out."
The thing raised it's wings higher and opened it's mouth wide.
"Look out!", Draco screamed.
They both jumped to opposite sides as the thing sent a wave of acid their way. It missed and a nearby rock dissolved.
/
Klegghorn pulled up his car near the crime scene where two other officers were behind their cars and obviously holding out. Klegghorn got out his blaster as he exited his vehicle alongside Wildwing and Canard.
"What's the sitch?", Klegghorn asked.
One officer looked his way.
"Basic deal. Four guys with firearms and clearly not easy to give up."
Klegghorn frowned.
"Hold the line, I'm going in from the side with my back up."
The officer gave a thumbs up.
"Careful."
Klegghorn led Wildwing and Canard around the side where a hole was seen being drilled.
"Classic getaway.", Klegghorn said rolling his eyes, "Met these about a hundred times give or take."
He took out what looked like a smoke bomb and held the pin.
"How fast can you two move?", he asked.
Canard smiled.
"We're pretty fast officer."
Klegghorn looked assured.
"Soon as that hole opens up, I'll throw this and give some cover. Just be warned, those crooks are still armed so don't go crazy in there."
By then, the drill hole had formed and Klegghorn removed the pin and tossed it. After it went off, Wildwing and Canard charged in. After several whacks, a lot of gunfire, and more than a few screams, the smoke cleared away revealing Wildwing and Canard standing over the crooks bound and unarmed. Klegghorn radioed the other officers.
"Okay, crooks apprehended. Take em away."
/
Derek and Rosie were more than on edge as they watched through the telescope. Then, their kids swam up to the lens and waved.
"Derek, I found them!"
Derek got alarmed.
"Okay, sending the antidote ."
He reached over and held out the bottle to dip in a couple drops into the water as the fish swam away from the lens. After a couple minutes, some bubbling came up and all three kids burst to the surface gasping. Rosie and Derek pulled them into the boat just as a whirlpool started forming.
"Punch it!", Derek screamed.
Rosie and him got to the wheel and turned as hard as they could, but the whirlpool was too strong. As the boat got further towards the center, a large mouth with row after row of shark teeth was seen through the foam which only made the family start panicking.
"We're gonna die?", Timmy asked worried.
Benny even looked a bit scared.
"I'm thinking we were better off babysat."
Snowdrop looked his way with a raised eyebrow.
"We're about to die and now you admit that safety is better than an adventure?"
Luckily, nobody died cause a rift formed above the boat pulling it away, but land in the middle of a wasteland near a gas station that looked abandoned.
"Well, now we went from ocean to land in a heartbeat.", Rosie said.
Derek led his family off the boat and to the station where they entered cautiously.
"Hello?", Derek asked.
Benny noticed large claw marks across the walls and the bloody splatters made it even more ominous.
"Um..I think we should go.", Timmy said.
They turned back to the door and Derek gripped the knob and pulled, but the door wouldn't budge.
"Great, now we're locked in."
Timmy looked more scared and was about to burst out crying when Snowdrop held his arm calming him. Benny however was looking around.
"What are you doing?", Rosie asked him.
"Just wondering if there's another door.", Benny told her.
Then the radio nearby clicked on with creepy music as the lights got dim.
"That can't be good.", Derek said getting more than a bit frightened.
Animal growling softly came into the room and the family got close together as Benny noticed a door hidden behind some shelves. Derek saw it too and that was when the lights came back on.
"Tell me that's a good sign.", Rosie pleaded.
Derek helped clear the shelves and the door behind them opened to reveal a hallway of a mansion.
"Can we just go home?", Timmy asked.
Snowdrop sighed heavily.
"Not much we can do but go forward."
/
Tanya flattened herself against the wall as she tried to calm down. Ever since she got out of that rift, she was blown by a sandstorm that felt like glass shards were in it, almost fell through a large crack in the ground that looked bottomless, and scorched by a blazing sun in this landscape. Luckily she found shelter in this run down hospital.
"Please let all of this be near it's end.", she prayed.
A crack of glass nearby made her nerves stand on edge. She gripped her puck blaster and prepared to jump out from behind the corner as footsteps got closer.
"One..two..three!"
She jumped out with her flashlight going on only to reveal Grin and Adam which she almost fired on. Luckily she stopped herself before she got that far.
"Tanya?!", Adam asked in shock.
Tanya looked equally surprised.
"Grin? Adam? You guys end up here too?"
Grin's expression mellowed out.
"I almost lost hope I'd see you in this landscape of despair."
Tanya sighed.
"Well I got away from a zombie attack and clearly I'm in another reality like it."
"Who were you with?", Adam asked eagerly.
"Duke, Mallory, Danielle, BRAWN and me.", Tanya reported, "Didn't find anyone else and we solved a riddle which sent another rift and we got separated."
Adam looked impressed.
"The keepers do their homework.", he commented, "I found myself alone and encountered deadly machines that almost did me in. I thought I was gonna die here until Grin found me. Brought me here to recuperate and luckily my healing factor took up most of the damage and stabilized me enough so natural healing could patch me up."
"Hopefully there's not another rhyme to puzzle over.", Tanya said as Adam conjured an ice pack to place on her sweating forehead, "I'm not sure I can take much more."
/
Nosedive looked over the bow and out to the open ocean. The salty sea air flowed over his face and the setting sun in the distance made the scene look so serene.
"Hey Nosedive."
Nosedive turned to see Julia wearing a fine silk dress that looked like it belonged to a high society lady. Nearby, but hidden, Thrash, Mookie, Morpha and Foxy observed. Foxy opened one of it's tails and a certain melody started playing as Julia walked up to Nosedive.
"So what brings you-"
"Shh.", Nosedive answered putting a finger to his beak before holding his hand out, "Gimme your hand."
She did and Nosedive got that mischievous look in his eye.
"Now close your eyes. Go on."
Julia looked hesitant, but she did so.
"Step up.", Nosedive said walking to the side allowing Julia to come forward, "Now hold on to the rail. Keep your eyes closed no peeking."
"I'm not.", Julia answered cause she wasn't peeking like Nosedive instructed.
"Step up on to the rail.", Nosedive continued.
She did and Nosedive stood behind her.
"You trust me?"
"I do.", Julia said.
Nosedive held her arms out and then put his hands on her hips.
"Alright. Open your eyes."
Julia did and she was spellbound enough to let out a gasp. It actually looked like she was gliding over the ocean's surface reflecting the setting sun.
"I'm flying.", she said in awe.
Thrash and Mookie felt their hearts skip a beat.
"Ah, young love.", Thrash said, "Thanks for the music Foxy. It really helped."
Morpha looked the couple's way and smiled as it's color points turned yellow.
"Why does this part always bring tears to my eyes?", Mookie asked as she wiped her eyes with a tissue(I have no idea where that came from). Foxy then looked a bit concerned and it's tail shifted back to a tail cutting off the music.
"What is it?", Mookie asked.
Nosedive and Julia got off the rail and came over both looking a bit worried.
"What happened?", Thrash asked.
"Thought we saw something.", Julia answered, "Something under the water and I got this sinking feeling."
Nosedive nodded.
"Yeah, I got that bad vibe too girly-girl."
/
Zeral looked upon the palace and sneered.
"So a usurper sits where I was ment to.", he said coldly.
He raised a hand and snapped his fingers. The enchantium around his neck flared as the skies above turned dark and formed clouds. Charyus looked impressed at his handiwork. Nearby, Harzep, Gerazi, Darcel and Geoff watched still bound by the bindings Zeral had conjured.
"You realize what you've done?!", Harzep asked.
Charyus looked his way smiling.
"Zeral and I are only reclaiming what is rightfully ours."
"By destroying the place we were given?!", Darcel countered, "Look around you and who you're allied with!"
Charyus looked his way coldly.
"You're lucky Zeral and I are letting you live long enough to see this. In mere minutes, my enchantium will reach it's full potential and all will fall."
Geoff looked unsure.
"As powerful as you are Charyus, even you have limits."
Charyus' smile returned.
"Oh Lord Geoff. Such short vision and yet so much defiance. You turn on your own flesh and blood, but still your heart is dominant and clouds your thought. Once Frazzak has been replaced, Zeral will take his rightful place and remake our world into a true utopia."
"That ambition died when Zeral almost killed Sauria.", Gerazi stated firmly, "You talk of power and freedom, but what makes you think you're not just a weapon to achieve Zeral's ends?"
Charyus paused and took a breath.
"I did what was best for our empire. If you had been there in my place, you would have done the same."
Darcel's expression darkened further, but Charyus remained unphased.
"So your patron has more control of you than you're willing to let on is he?"
Zeral's enchantium flared further, but then died down.
"Charyus!", Zeral snapped turning around, "Explain this to me!"
"Patience your majesty, this was just a flux."
Zeral looked unsure.
"Or, you know something."
Charyus paused as his eyes flared with purple light.
"So the eyes of fate predict once more.", Zeral said looking calmer, "Tell me oracle, what do you see?"
"Powerful magic we wield, but the meek holds a friend that brings our doom once more."
Zeral smiled.
"Drake DuCaine.", he muttered, "Oh how I long to-"
He was cut off cause the skies tore asunder revealing Servain and a bunch of the saurian pantheon beside him.
"Zeral of Garvuk Wastes, you are disrupting the balance of power and by the power vested in me by the divine court, I order you to stand down and submit!"
Zeral's enchantium flared again.
"I yield to no patron guardian of earth."
Servain frowned.
"Then you forced our hand."
/
Wildwing helped load the crooks into the transporter as Kleggorn and Canard did some investigating.
"Well nothing seems stolen.", Klegghorn said inspecting the bags the crooks had, "Just the register."
"But why?", Canard asked, "It doesn't make sense."
"Obviously these were first timers.", Klegghorn concluded, "Though I doubt this has anything to do with that rhyme."
Wildwing looked thoughtful.
"This is like the times we saved Anaheim only this time, we're actually from Anaheim and not Puckworld.", he said with inspiration, "Serious deja vu."
That was when the skies cracked open revealing a massive rift right over where they were standing. Before any of them could grab anything, they were sucked into the gaping abyss with one of the crooks following only for his mask to fall away to reveal that it was Phil.
"Phil?!", Klegghorn asked in shock, "What were you doing there?!"
"I have no idea!", Phil screamed as they flew into the rift, "I found a ski mask, my head was cold, I put it on, I blacked out."
Wildwing rolled his eyes.
"Glad you're back Phil."
Phil looked a bit inspired when he saw Wildwing and Canard.
"You guys look great like that. Certainly worth a magazine cover or a model session."
Canard chuckled.
"Don't get attached to it.", he said.
Phil saw them all return to their duck forms and he sighed heavily.
"Well, no harm no foul.", he admitted before seeing the other end of the rift, "Question: why are we heading straight for a satellite floating in space?"
Wildwing and Canard both looked unsure. Whatever was next wasn't going to be pretty.
To be continued...
