AUTHOR'S NOTE: Finally, after over a year, the conclusion of The Path of Consequence! Thank you to all of the loyal readers out there who took the time to review. I really hope you all enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it!
DISCLAIMER: Negaduck and Darkwing Duck are ©Disney. Jacob Mallard is ©Amanda Rohrssen. Jake Mallard and the completed story The Path of Consequence is © me, Rachel Faraday.
The Conclusion
Much has happened since I was introduced to the homicidal alter-ego of my son. In the years following, I remained at SHUSH and upheld my charade as an astounding and successful agent. And just last year, I was promoted to replace Agent Gryzlikoff as Chief Agent. Now I am revered by the entire city of St. Canard for my skills and flawless reputation. The people see me as the perfect federal agent who upholds the law and protects them from evil.
But now you know better.
I continue to impress everyone around me, and I still succeed in hiding my true colors from their naive eyes. My talent to deceive only grows stronger with each passing year. No one would dare believe that Chief Agent Jake Mallard of SHUSH is a murderer, and I intend to keep it that way.
Negaduck continues his reign of terror over St. Canard, and Darkwing Duck has become known as the city's resident vigilante. And although the two identical mallards are eternal enemies, Negaduck has not forgotten his vow to destroy me with his own two hands. And he never will. Every morning when I walk up the front steps of SHUSH, I can feel his eyes on me, watching my every move. I can feel his thirst for vengeance even from a distance. Negaduck wants his revenge, and I know he will stop at nothing to spill my blood.
But as he continues to hunt me, I will be hunting him. Behind the SHUSH shield, I am justified in destroying the mallard menace at all costs. This battle between us will not end until one of us has died at the hands of the other. Negaduck's motivation to kill me is strong, but my skills and experience are stronger, and I will not make it so easy for him to have his vengeance.
When you first began to read my words, you may have found yourself entranced by me. Maybe you even liked me. And even as you've learned of my life experiences and the downfalls associated with them, you may have begun to pity me.
Don't.
Pity is a weapon which I can easily use against you. And I hate it when people feel sorry for me. It disgusts me, because I deserve anything but pity from anyone. I've inflicted too much harm on others to earn any sympathy. I destroyed my family, and I trapped my only son in a life of bloody-thirsty malice and hatred. I traded Ava's freedom for my own personal gain regardless of her confession of true feelings toward me. I intruded on the life of Jacob Mallard, and fueled by own jealousy, I took away from him everything that I once had but lost at my own fault. And even now I am willing to kill my own son before he can kill me.
I do not want your pity.
But don't think of me as a sociopath. Sociopaths have no trace of a conscience and completely lack the ability to express any positive emotion. I am not a sociopath, because despite everything you have read, and despite what you may think, there is something that I've felt for the past twenty years, and I will continue to feel for the rest of my life.
Guilt.
I miss my wife every day, and I wonder what Drake would have become if he'd grown up in a normal, loving family. Instead, I've thrown him into a raging sea of tyranny. I regret the choices I'd made which ultimately led to where I am now. I would give anything to turn back the hands of time and have a second chance at the life I once had. The life which I took for granted and didn't realize how precious it was until it was too late. Thinking of what I lost pains me every day, on occasion to the point of wanting to pull my handgun from its holster and press it against my temple. But then my greed for power and authority keeps me going in the life I have now. I love that feeling, and it keeps my conscience locked away in the dark corner of my mind.
Reconciliation with Negaduck will never happen. I know it, and he knows it. He hates me too much, and I have no compassion left in me. Ava destroyed that and my ability to love years ago. Sometimes I wonder if I will ever again be who I once was all those years ago, or if I will ever feel for another living being again. The outlook is a grim one. Perhaps that is one thing that Negaduck and I have in common.
Well, there you have it. That is the story of Jake Mallard and how he sired the merciless public enemy. But it is far from over.
The city continues to admire me. Men wish to be me, and women desire to be with me. And while I've gained the respect and confidence of nearly every citizen, I will still have my few enemies. Old enemies. Negaduck is only one of them. I had not seen the last of Jacob Mallard, and I would soon see Ava Moore again as well. But I will acquire my allies as well. Darkwing Duck will fall victim to my deceit and begin to look up to me as the father figure who he believed had abandoned him many years ago. And I would mold his mind just like everyone else. A young sorceress will also be preyed upon through my charm for the sole purpose of having her powers to use against my enemies. My enemies will align themselves with one another; they will join forces to fight against me and my own allies. I will turn father against son and lie to the innocent whom admires me. And I will do it without feeling an ounce of guilt.
Oh yes, it is far from over. I have just begun to play the violent strings of my symphony.
"He told the tale so many times
About the dream not meant to be
In a world of the free.
He plays with your mind.
As faith for the future faded fast
He grows strong with their displeasure.
It sets him free.
Deceiver of hearts
Deceiver of fools
He rules with fear.
Deceiver of hearts
Deceiver of fools
He rules again.
He feeds off fear, poisons the truth
To gain their faith, to lead the way
To a world of decay.
He rules your heart.
He'll sell your soul to the grave
Without a hesitation to make.
He belongs to the dark."
'Deceiver of Fools' is ©Within Temtation