The Golden Heart
Chapter 4
After a long trip across the ocean, the plane that Launchpad had flown from Duckberg to Sitka, France was finally coming in for a landing.
The trip in and of itself had been surprisingly uneventful, seeing as how Scrooge, Glomgold, and Fenton had slept through most of the trip. Launchpad had been able to put the plane on auto-pilot for a while once they were across the ocean and get a bit of shut eye himself; making sure to have six separate alarm clocks to wake him up and make sure he could check on the plane every few hours.
"Righty-O, fellow passengers!" came Launchpad's booming voice from inside the cockpit. "We're coming in to Sitka, France at four o'clock!"
Fenton blinked sleepily from where he was lying awkwardly in his seat, cheek having been resting on Scrooge's shoulder, much the older duck's changrin. "Four o'clock? That can't be right! I thought we were getting there at noon!"
Scrooge scowled as he wiped away some of the drool Fenton had left on his shoulder. "He means the angle in which we're descendin' the plane, ye dingus!"
"Oh!" squeaked the account. "Heh! I knew that!"
Glomgold stretched from where he was sitting on the other side of the plane, away from where Scrooge and Fenton were seated. "Ugh, finally! It'll be nice to be on land again!" He raised his arms over his head to stretch. "I tell ya, McDuck, had we taken one of MY planes, we would have been much more comfortable!"
Scrooge picked up his top hat from where it had been lying on the floor by his webbed feet and sneered, "Need I remind you how you were an unwanted guest upon this trip! I suggest you stop yer whinin' and make yerself useful by shuttin' yer glob!"
Glomgold's bill down turned into a sneer.
Launchpad's voice kept the second richest duck in the world from responding. "T-minus five minutes until we land, Mr. McDee!"
"Splendid!" smiled Scrooge. He leaned over more towards Fenton, who was sitting by the window, in hopes to catch of view of their surroundings. He couldn't see too much, since they were still a ways in the air, but far off into the horizon he could see some hills and trees. Cities and small towns littered around the natural landscape.
"Have you ever been to France before, Scroogey?" came Fenton's voice in the form of a question.
Scrooge looked up at him as he leaned back in his chair. "Hmm? Oh, aye. Of course I have. Though I'd say its been roughly thirty years since I've set foot there."
"Golly! Thirty years?" Fenton replied in wonder.
Scrooge narrowed his eyes, though he didn't seem angry or offended. "Aye, Fenton. Yer datin' an old man, remember?"
Fenton blushed and looked away. "T-That's not how I meant for it to come across, my dearest, I swear! I was just surprised you haven't been here in that long of a time!"
Scrooge shrugged. "I've had more important things to do, I suppose."
"Like rockin' the cradle?!" came Glomgold's jeering voice. Fenton and Scrooge turned to him, the latter of the two, sneering. "Because let's face facts, McDuck, that's exactly what yer doin' here with this lump!" The second richest duck gestured to the accountant.
"OH, go soak yer head, Flintheart!" was Scrooge's retort. "And what, pray tell, have you been doin' the past thirty years-Besides losin' t'me at bein' the richest!"
Glomgold opened his beak in fury, but was interrupted when the plane began to shake from a good deal of turbulence. Scrooge leaned over his seat to see a better look at Launchpad in the cockpit. "Launchpad! What's goin' on!?"
"Eh...You want the good news or the bad news, first, Mr. McDee?" asked Launchpad nervously as the plane continued to shake.
Scrooge groaned. "The bad news."
"Alright, the bad news is: we're comin' in to some pretty heavy and gusty winds, which is causing me to have more difficulty landin'."
"And the good news?"
"Eh...Good news is...I'm very experienced with plane crashes and have yet to have an unsuccessful crash." He paused as the plane began to tremble and moan from the quickly changing altitudes. "Heh, see what I mean about the heavy winds?"
"THAT'S the 'good' news!?" screeched Scrooge.
"Well, 'I' think it's good news!" replied the pilot indignantly.
"Curse me kilts, laddie! That is t'farthest thing from good news!" growled the miser.
The plane began to shake from heavy turbulence, causing all four ducks to shout in alarm. Fenton quickly gripped the arm rests to his seat in a death grip."Suddenly getting to sit next to a window isn't such an awesome idea anymore!" he wailed in panic.
"I swear, McDuck, if you get us killed for allowin' this lump of a buffoon to fly a plane, I'll kill ya myself!"
Fenton, despite his intense fear for his life, hummed in thought. "Hmm...That would be rather impressive seeing as how we'll likely already be dead when you kill him."
"SHUT UP!" both Scrooge and Glomgold snarled at the same time.
The plane dipped downward suddenly and Scrooge leaned further back into his seat, grabbing his own arm rests in the process, though his left hand landed on Fenton's own vice grip. This caused the Scottish billionaire to flinch and turn to Fenton owlishly. Both of them stared at their touching hands, not sure what to make of it.
A blaring alarm started going off from the cockpit, the loud noise making their ears ring.
"Oh, hey look, Mr. McDee!" exclaimed Launchpad happily from the cockpit. He turned away from the controls to smile back at his boss as though they weren't in immediate danger. He pointed to the ground that was rapidly growing in detail as it inched closer and closer. "Looks like we made it to the Sitka airport after all!"
"SPLENDID!" snapped Scrooge, not sounding remotely enthused. "Now is there any chance of us NOT crashing into it!?"
Launchpad airily turned back to the joystick and pursed his lips. "Hmm...Well, if the hand signals I think I see from the guys down there at the run way mean anything, I'd say we're going in the complete opposite direction we're supposed to be goin'. Meanin' the runway is facing the wrong way." A pause. "Oh, I see how they're signs are set up! Yeah, we're definitely going the wrong way."
"Then turn us around so we're facin' the RIGHT way!" suggested Glomgold.
"Alrighty, so let's see here!" Launchpad began pressing a few buttons and shifted the joystick to the right, which turned the plane. BAM!
They all flinched at the sound of metal hitting and scraping other metal.
"That doesn't sound like the sound of a safe landing!" whined Fenton. He made the mistake of glancing out the window, instantly risking a hand up to his beak as his face turned green. "Oooh, now I know what a stray balloon in the air feels like..."
"Oh, uh..." started Launchpad eloquently. "Yeah, that would have been one of our stabilizers ...Seems there were more screws loose on that thing than I realized..."
"There's far too many screws loose in your head!" accused Scrooge.
Glomgold suddenly groaned loudly. "Oooohhh, WHHYYYY did I ever think it would be a good idea to get into ANY plane that McQuack of all people is flying!?"
Fenton scrunched his eyes shut, unable to hold back his whimpers. "Scroogey, my love, my paramour, the apple of my eye!" Fenton suddenly gushed. "At least I know that in these last few moments of my life, I'm with you!"
Scrooge just stared at the accountant, looking gobsmacked. He refused to admit that the heat in his cheeks had anything to do with him blushing; no, it was most likely the heat the engine from the plane that was about to crash. Or the temperature rising due to something else being broken on this plane. He was sure of it.
"Ugh, I'm gonnae die from a hernia if I have to listen to another word out of your mouth, lad" groused Glomgold.
"Alrighty, boys, just hold on tight!" warned Launchpad as he guided them as best he could towards the runway; just barely managing to turn the plane in the correct direction so that they could land. "Brace yourselves!"
The roaring sound of the engine changed in pitch as they reached closer to the ground. Launchpad flipped a switch to allow the wheels to unhinge themselves and brace for the landing. They bounced violently as the wheels made contact with the cement of the runway and Scrooge finally let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, nor for how long. At least they had made it to the ground in one piece. He glanced past a slightly green Fenton, who's eyes were still squeezed shut, and watched as trees and metal fencing flew past. Occasionally he would see some directional signs and lights from the airport and briefly caught sight of the Airport Tower.
After a long minute, it was Glomgold who spoke up. "Hmm...Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the plane supposed to be slowing down at this point?"
All three passengers looking inquiringly towards the back of Launchpad's head where he was frantically hitting buttons and other controls. "Uh...No, you're most certainly right there, Mr. Glomgold, sir. It's just uh...thing is...The brakes don't seem to want to work either."
"WHAT!?" shouted Fenton, Scrooge, and Glomgold at the same time.
Launchpad slammed on the brakes of the plane in a valiant attempt to slow them down. It was working, though not nearly as quickly as they would have hoped. The screeching from the tires proved just how fast they weren't supposed to be going at this point in the landing. "Mr. McDee, we're not stopping fast enough and we're gonna hit some trees and fencing up ahead!" shouted the pilot in a terrified voice.
Scrooge closed his eyes and muttered a brief curse before snapping them back open. "Fine then! Let the plane crash!"
"Are yeh outta yer mind!?"
"Scroogey, you're crazy!"
Fenton and Glomgold had spoken at the same time and though Scrooge wasn't entirely sure what either of them had said, he knew what they meant. He shook his head as he unfastened his seat belt, finally letting go of Fenton's hand. "We're gonna let it crash because we're not gonna be on it!" He stood on wobbly feet before kneeling down and reaching underneath his seat.
"What are you doing?" was Fenton's question.
"Getting us something soft to land on" replied Scrooge as he pulled out a large flotation and quickly found the string that allowed it to inflate. "Everyone, get outta yer seats, gather yer bags, and come over t'me if yeh want to avoid crashin' with his infernal plane!"
Glomgold acted without speaking; ripping off his seat belt, grabbing his suitcase, and scrambling over to McDuck, nearly colliding into him as he lost balance. Fenton was soon to follow as he brought over both his own luggage and Scrooge's.
"Every good captain goes down with his ship!" Launchpad called over his shoulder, not bothering to move from his seat.
"This isn't a ship!" retorted Scrooge.
"The principle still stands!"
Scrooge rolled his eyes, watching as Fenton leaned towards him, clutching his left arm tightly.
He could feel Glomgold's hand on his upper back. "Launchpad, I'll make sure yeh never set foot in another airplane again in yer life if yeh don't get over here NOW!"
The pilot didn't waste time taking off his head gear and getting up. "Ya know, I always believed you and I saw eye to eye, Mr. McDee" he conceded with an upbeat approach. "Oh, heh, I had forgotten to buckle my seat belt..." He tentatively released the joystick and turned to make his way over to them. "Guess it don't matter now!"
Once the four of them were huddled close, Scrooge glanced up and through the front windows of the cockpit. He gulped when he saw how close the trees and fence were getting. He could hear Launchpad say distantly, "I'd say we have about a minute before we hit those trees, Mr. McDee. Maybe less, so...might want to continue your plan..."
Scrooge nodded. They were standing in front of the emergency side door. Launchpad wordlessly caught on to what Scrooge had been planning and reached over to unlatch the door. A gust of wind blew into their faces and ruffled their feathers, but Scrooge only seemed to be encouraged rather than alarmed. "On t'count of three! One, two, THREEEE!"
All of them pushed the flotation device towards the door as Scrooge pulled the string to inflate it. With Fenton on his left, Launchpad on his right, Glomgold clinging to his back, and Scrooge in the middle, all of them screamed as they jumped out of the plane and the flotation device blew up underneath them. They all bounced on the now soft device and skidded off the runway and into the grass where they came to a halting stop.
The plane continued on without them, crashing into the line of trees and fencing seconds later. The loud scraping and bending of mental reached their ears, but none of them hardly heard it for they were all huddled up in a ball on top of the flotation device.
Glomgold brought his head up first, his forehead having been pressed against Scrooge's back. He laughed hysterically. "Heh heh! We made it! We're ALIVE!"
Launchpad was second to look up, his eyes instantly going to the plane. "Hey! I still say that's a good landin'! The engine didn't even catch on fire!" It was then that the engine caught fire. "Aww, well, gee. Spoke too soon, I guess..."
Both Scrooge and Fenton became aware of where they were at the same time. Fenton was down in a fetal position on Scrooge's left side, his head tucked underneath Scrooge's arms protectively, the accountant's ear pressed up against the billionaire's chest. Scrooge slowly moved so that Fenton could and they both leaned back and blinked at each other. "You alright, Scroogey, my love?"
Scrooge nodded absently. "Aye, Fenton. I am. Are you?"
Fenton nodded slowly. "Yeah, I think so." He looked down, unable to meet his eyes anymore. "Thank you for saving us, Scrooge." He boldly reached over and placed his hand on Scrooge's.
Their sentimental moment was cut off by Glomgold, who was grumbling about the rest of his luggage. "This was only my carry on! What about the rest of my stuff!?"
Launchpad shrugged as the two of them watched the plane slowly catch further on fire. "Oh, I'm sure its fine. It's down in the loading area. FAR away from the engine fire."
Glomgold opened his beak to continue arguing but by this point, both Fenton and Scrooge had stood up and walked over to them. "Oh, stop yer belly achin'!" He turned his attention to Launchpad. "Launchpad, go and put that fire out! We'll be needin' that plane t'get back home and you're gonnae have t'fix it! So, I suggest yeh get to it before it burns to a crisp!"
Launchpad shook his head. "No can do, Mr. McDee."
"And why's that!?" squawked the old miser.
The pilot in question gestured towards the plane. "Cause it looks like the local fire department is already doin' it for me. Heh heh."
McDuck whipped his head around to see that it was true. Half a dozen men were now housing off the fire. One of them was also running towards them.
Coming to an abrupt stop, the gentlemen asked them in a panicked voice, "Monsieur! Are you alright!? The plane- Were you the only ones on board!? Where is the pilot!? Are they-"
Launchpad raised his hand. "Me. I was the pilot. AM the pilot. And I'm a McQuack, meaning there is no such thing as a bad landing so long as you can walk away from it!" he beamed.
The man gave him a curious look before turning to Scrooge and Glomgold. "Am I to assume you are Monsieur's McDuck and Glomgold."
"That I am, the great Flintheart Glomgold" gloated Glomgold, finding his cane and hammering it into the ground for emphasis. "One of the world's richest ducks and don't yeh be forgetting that."
Scrooge made a face before offering his hand in a handshake. "And I am Scrooge McDuck. THE richest duck in the world" He glared at Glomgold, who only glared back. "Pleasure to meet yeh, lad. Only, I wish it were under better circumstances.
"And I'm Fenton" piped up the accountant. "Pretty sure I'm the poorest accountant in the world."
The gentleman in uniform nodded with a polite smile. "Pleasure to meet you all. Our crew will take care of your plane-"
"I'd rather me own pilot and mechanic do that, thank you" snipped Scrooge with a sniff.
"It would be no trouble-"
"Save for the money that would come out of me wallet for your assistance. I said my pilot can deal with it" sneered Scrooge.
The gentleman snapped his mouth shut and nodded. "If you insist, monsieur."
"I do" was the grumbled reply. Scrooge glanced over and saw Fenton splayed out on the ground. "Fenton, are yeh alright?"
"Hmmm...fine now that I'm on the beloved ground. I'm not gonna leave you ever again, great mother Earth!" sighed Fenton.
Scrooge made a face as he realized the younger mallard was kissing the cement. He reached down and grabbed Fenton's arm, pulling him to his feet. "Get up."
Fenton glanced around him and all four of them took in the sights around them. They were in a small valley, surrounded by green hills that were mostly covered in trees and grasses. The sun was in the middle of the sky and there was a soft breeze in the air. "Wow...So this is France..." awed Fenton.
Scrooge nodded as he took in a deep breath of fresh air. "Aye, laddie. It's been a bumpy landin', but we made it t'France." He smiled in excitement, knowing that he was closer to his beloved Golden Heart than ever before.
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Author's Note: So, I FINALLY updated this. Hopefully you enjoyed it. :)
