Roots Of Revenge Chapter 4: Rebirth and Steel Pipes, a darkwing duck fanfic

Roots of Revenge

-Chapter 4-

Rebirth and Steel Pipes

The sun was rising, seeping a red hue across the waking world when Dr. Rhoda Dendrin was finally permitted to aid in the search. The police had found blood on some foliage and a shoe on the far west side of the forest. She didn't believe he was dea…, she couldn't even think about it. She knew that if he needed somewhere to hide it would be at that tree. She pushed a branch out of her face and felt the blood rub off on her fingers. Her heart sank into her stomach, she refused to look at her hand but instead had her sight locked on the red trail that adorned the leaves in front of her. The police dog moved along beside her, the tree was just ahead. He'd be there she knew it! She pushed the officer out of her way and rushed past the interfering plant life.

"Reginald?! REGGIE!" She screamed and burst into the grove. The sun caught her eyes and she squinted around the small clearing. For an instant her memories flooded her senses and she saw him sitting at the tree's roots, his black hair lazily blowing about and his beautiful eyes upon her. She blinked and reality smashed upon her, as she noticed the violent splattered blood that mingled with the surroundings. Her legs gave out and started trembling as the tears swam down her face. The policeman walked on and stopped.

"What the hell is that?"

She raised her eyes and saw what appeared to be a sapling that had sprouted from the roots of Reggie's tree. It was man height and was far too advanced to have grown there naturally. She tried to say this but she could only produce feeble sounding noises through her tears.

"Looks like some kinda tree.." the dog pulled off a leaf from the tree and it moved. In a whirl of clumsy choreography the tree had wrapped it's branches around the canine's throat. And before she knew it she heard herself screaming. The tree released the limp body, which crumpled to the floor. It retracted it's branches and wrapped them around the rim of the trunk right below the canopy. Then it opened them. It opened it's eyes.

There was a noise. A horrible shrieking noise, it tore through his head and rammed into his brain. He remembered he could see and with blinding flash he saw the world spinning around him. The noise was still there, it made him want to rip his roots out! He had no sooner thought it, when he felt his roots departing from the soil, digging their way to the surface. He blinked and the spinning toned down. The painful racket was still ringing in his head and he could see something swirling around making the sound. For something so small it really could make quite a lot of noise. It was a strange flower with white and brown petals…no. Something else reawakened within him. It wasn't a flower… it was a woman. The screeching abruptly stopped and a softer weaker sound started coming from the woman. The spinning ceased and he focused on the cowering figure, she was hiding her face with her arms making painful sounds. Crying. Yes, crying, that's what they call it. They? The creature looked down at the long slender leaves sprouting from his branches and discovered he could move them. They…? No…. We? ….I. Suddenly it hit him like a freight train. His past life bombarded him relentlessly, perhaps worst of all he could remember the pain of his death. He stood there staring at his "hands" until he heard her whimpering.

"You… you killed him didn't you…" she let out a painful sob. "You monster you killed Reggie!"

He opened his mouth and felt the dryness of his throat. He could speak? Right, of course he could… Reggie could speak.. so why not him?

"Rhoda." His voice was hoarse and cracked, this 'talking' was painful.

She slowly removed her arms from her face. Her brown eyes danced with tears and fright.

"No…." she whispered. "y… you can't be…. Reg…"

"I'm not." He found that swallowing helped heal the pain of speech.

"But…" Her eyes locked on his. "Your…."

"I was Reginald Bushroot." His words were filled with a thick hatred, and a coldness she had never witnessed before in those eyes. "Until they killed him. Now…" he looked miserably at himself. "Now I am as you said a 'monster'."

He felt his bark quiver when her hand touched him. He looked her in the face and didn't see the fear that had dwelled there moments ago.

"No…. Reggie. Your no monster… your alright, that is all that matters."

"Alright? Alright?! " the trees around them shuddered at the sound on his voice. "Does this look alright to you! I was murdered! Rhoda do you understand that! Murdered! Now I am some mutated freak! All because of… them." There was a glint in his eyes as he recalled his murderers that made her want to run. But she didn't.

"Reggie….w..what are you saying?"

"I've said already that Reginald is dead. Now I am just Bushroot. Kind of ironic don't you think? And what I'm saying, Rhoda, is that every good murder deserves an other."

The morning sun was gently rising to it's peak. It nagged at his eyelids, so he pulled the cap down over his eyes. The scrap yard was quiet as usual, good thing too, he needed to catch up on some sleep. He had a numbness all throughout his body, it was quite pleasant, well better than the pain he had felt no more than two hours earlier. It took him an hour and a half to fish out the glass and splinters. A sigh escaped him while he opened his icy blue eyes. He couldn't shake what Hoover had said. 'I don't know what possessed you to live this ridiculous way of life..' … ridiculous? He looked out over the mounds of scrap metal glaring in the bright rays of the sun. He usually made himself leave "Darkwing" in the Audubon Bay Bridge hideout; he was Drake Mallard during the day. However, lately he'd been slipping. The fact of the matter was, that he was Darkwing. Drake Mallard only existed to report for work and sign checks. He had no friends, no known residence and no family. So Drake Mallard wasn't exactly a secret identity, more of an invisible person. And this invisible person was currently in a foul mood. Usually he'd rummage through the scrap salvaging for pieces that held potential. Normally he'd have his police radio on, listening intently to the criminal activity that happened while the sun was out. But today he just wanted to sleep. So when he heard the distant clanging he growled, and painfully stood up.

"Damn kids…. I've had enough with the god damned punks."

He stormed out of the small shack that was referred to as 'the office'. The hot sun beat down on him and he heard the sounds of an 'epic battle'. He malevolently smiled to himself. He'd scare them good this time. Those stupid brats should know better than to play in a scrap yard anyway. He snuck up and saw them, two little boys clanging hollow pipes together, mimicking a sword battle. Drake Mallard wasn't invisible to everyone of course. He had made quite an impression on the kids of the block. 'Mad Marbles Mallard', that's what they called him, thinking he was a deranged lunatic who hated kids. They were half right. So now what better time to practice a little voice acting? 'Mad Marbles' would scare these kids home crying to momma. His smirk grew and he cleared his throat, it was then he noticed another one. This one was shorter than the other two, and was wearing a bright blue baseball cap. It seemed Blue hat was rummaging for a good weapon, mission accomplished apparently because he quickly entered the fray swinging harder and more efficiently than the others.

"Three's more fun than two.." Drake thought to himself and he prepared one of his favorite voices. Mad Marbles Mallard's scratchy high-pitched southern drawl boomed, "Whut's dat ya smell Killer!? Some dang kids? Whell SUUUUEEEY! Lets'a git' um!"

The boys dropped their weapons, except for Blue hat who held his ready.

"I told you we shouldn't have come here!" squealed boy one.

"We're gunna DIE! It's all your fault!" Sobbed boy two pointing accusedly at Blue hat.

"Oh shut up! I'll get 'em!" shouted Blue hat triumphantly. Drake snuck up from behind them while Marbles' voice came from in front.

"Ovah here Killer! Ah can smell um! WHOO-BOY we're eatin good tonight!"

"I'm getting outta here!" Shrieked boy two tears streaming down his face. The other boy nodded in agreement.

"Well you babies can go! I'm stayin' here!" proclaimed Blue hat.

Drake was right behind the shaking boys. He straightened himself out , making himself look as tall as he could, then quickly (and loudly) clapped a hand down on each of the boy's shoulders.

"Ah got um boy! Yoo kids shouldn'a come here!"

The boys bolted ripping free of his loose grip screaming like two-year-old girls. He was just about to laugh when he got whacked in the leg with a steel pipe. He felt his knee give out and a fresh wave of pain flood over him from those damn wounds.

"Okay Marbles! You better start walkin' unless you wanna face a night in the hospital!" growled the fearless Blue hat.

"Are you nuts kid!? What the hell's the matter with you!?" snarled Drake. From his kneeling position he was at eye level with the tiny terror. He was shocked at what stared back at him.

"A girl!"