An Author's Note: As usual, it's time for the reviewer count! My personal writer's superstition! It's at three, though I am pretty sure there are more of you reading. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to review and read. Especially the reading part. Reviews are nice, but they are not required.
Chapter Five
Memory
"Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaar!"
Dr. Fossil cringed back in his cage as the big beast lunged again at him, narrow snout poking between the bars at it snapped and drooled on the floor. The creature's trunk shaped legs and long claws attempted to reach through and gore Dr. Fossil, but he managed to avoid the huge feet. And to think, not two months ago this thing had been a harmless cat, and one month before that he had still, in many ways, remained with the mind of a cat. Now, however, its mind had regressed along with its body, devolved into this horrible monster.
"Oh Fluffy, what has he done to you!" Dr. Fossil said sadly.
"I'm really going to have to think of a better name for him. What kind of name is Fluffy?" A huge figure with a ridge of leaf shaped spines, like those of stegosaurs, fiddled around with a gun shaped device in his hand.
"You'll never get away with this, Stegmutt." Dr. Fossil snarled.
"Oh please, couldn't you think of something a little more original, you idiot." Stegmutt growled. He shook his head. "It's not like I'm not grateful to you. Your mind accelerator is what gave me my big brain, after all. And this Retro-Evolution Gun of yours," Stegmutt lifted the device. "Gave me enough brawn to go with the brains. It's all thanks to you."
"I should never have created that thing for you." Dr. Fossil said.
Stegmutt chuckled. "Like I said, I'm grateful, but…" Stegmutt loomed closer. "If you don't want me to slam you into a few more walls, you'll keep your big beak shut. You understand me, Doc?"
Dr. Fossil stared glumly at the former duck. Who would have thought such a simple minded janitor could have housed such a monster inside? He was just about to say something more when a dong like sound began to echo through the underground lab.
Stegmutt grinned. "I wonder who that could be. I don't think that many people knew about your lab, and not well enough to know about that doorbell of yours." He lifted the Retro-Evolution Gun with a grin. "Let me see, who am I going to add to my little gang?"
"You can't experiment on people! It's immoral!"
Stegmutt gave him an exasperated look. "Nice thought, you should have considered that before you decided to become a mad scientist."
"I'm not mad! Well…I'm mad at you, but that's it!"
Stegmutt chuckled and lumbered away, his huge tail slapping the top of Dr. Fossil's cage with a dismissive flick. Stegmutt whistled, and Fluffy followed like a loyal hound, his own tail swinging back and forth.
Dr. Fossil leaped to the side of the cage and strained his ears, listening to Stegmutt rumble towards the door. When that door opened he would scream, and hopefully whoever was there would run. He hoped so.
Dr. Fossil heard the door opening. He screamed a scream that was more like a screech. He heard voices, concerned voices, coming from the direction of the doorway. To late he realized that by doing this he might not have scared off his guests at all, but lured them in. Guilt stabbed at his heart as he heard two pairs of feet rushing to his position.
"No! Get out of here! He'll get you!" Dr. Fossil screamed.
"Doctor? It's me! It's Reggie!" The door to the underground lab opened and a strange creature burst through, a creature that Dr. Fossil had seen before. Still, though he knew who this was, Dr. Fossil still backed away from the cage and into the shadows.
"Reggie? Get out, Reggie! He'll turn you into a monster!"
"Hey, that's not nice! Bushy's just fine as he is!" To Dr. Fossil's shock Quackerjack came in after Bushroot. The duck was even more unsettling then Bushroot's plant form, as clowns always kind of creeped Dr. Fossil out. It was an odd, slight phobia he had after an incident with a clown in a sewer drain obsessed with floating things. Still, he remembered from Bushroot's last visit that Quackerjack was pretty harmless, as long as you were not a villain.
"Look, if you two don't leave he-"
"Shut up, Fossil."
Dr. Fossil cringed as Stegmutt came rumbling in, two gun like devices aimed at the two in front of him. One was the Retro-Evolution Gun, the other was the mind accelerator…turned on reverse.
"Hello." Stegmutt grinned and fired. Bushroot and Quackerjack leaped out of the way, and Stegmutt swung his tail at Quackerjack, bringing them to the ground as he leaped. Quackerjack tossed his signature teeth at Stegmutt. To Quackerjack's shock Stegmutt didn't appear to feel it. Instead, Stegmutt grinned and fired his two weapons, both of them hitting Quackerjack at the same time. Quackerjack screamed and writhed on the ground and his body began to shift and change.
Bushroot growled and lunged for Stegmutt, who swung his tail and wacked the plant mutant back. He fired his weapons again, and it was Bushroot's turn to transform, for the second time in his life.
Dr. Fossil watched in horror as Stegmutt smiled as his new followers. The mutant stegosaur thumped his tail on the ground, and the two creatures that had been Quackerjack and Bushroot stood up and walked over to him, hissing swinging their new tails, claws clicking on the ground. Stegmutt barked at them, and pointed at Dr. Fossil. He had to once again cringe back in his cage as the two lunged for him, hissing and snapping. There was no longer even a hint of their former personalities in their reptilian eyes.
"Now." Stegmutt said as his three saurian creations hissed and growled around him. "Let's go have some fun."
"Likky, I don't think pacing like that is going to make Bushroot and Quackerjack come back any faster." Megavolt said as he watched the Liquidator, who was pacing around. The poor man was tying himself into knots with anxiety. Not that Megavolt could blame him. This might help them find the Liquidator's son after all. Megavolt didn't like the thought of SHUSH getting their nasty claws on children. Who knew what horrible things might be happening to them. Still, SHUSH was a very secret organization, and it didn't seem likely that there would be much left of…well of anything. Megavolt didn't voice this opinion to the Liquidator, or anyone else for that matter. He didn't want to hurt the Liquidator, and he knew that even if they did find Hank dead at the very least that would be closure for the Liquidator.
"I can't. They've been gone for hours!" The Liquidator said.
"Maybe they had to convince this Dr. Fossil guy to help them." Megavolt said. "I mean, it's not every day a plant mutant and a clown show up at your door asking you to help them find out what a formula from an evil organization is for."
"No, I've meet him before. He knows about Bushroot. A while ago Bushroot wanted to reconnect with his old friends, and Quackerjack and I helped him. Dr. Fossil was one of them. It was actually pretty easy to convince him that Bushroot wasn't a killer. He's a reasonable guy, from what I saw."
"Still, seeing that pair appear on your doorstep has got to be a shock. And, other than that, who knows how long it was take him to figure out what that formula is for. It might take days."
"If it takes days then they would be back here!" The Liquidator snarled. "They'd come back and tell us what is going on! You need to keep your customers updated on the progress of you product!"
"That's why Bushroot and Quackerjack would make bad business men." Megavolt said. "I mean, could you imagine Quackerjack in a cooperate office."
"His family did own a toy company."
"That was his older brother." Megavolt said. "I mean, maybe if he took things seriously for once in his life he might be able to get some things done."
The Liquidator chuckled. "That's just what his brother used to say."
"How do you know?" Megavolt asked suspiciously.
"I've known Quackerjack a year longer then you." The Liquidator said, a little too quickly.
"Yeah, but-"Megavolt was about to purse the subject when the police radio they had for emergencies beeped to life.
"Alert! Alert. A…um…" there was static and the shouting of voices, as well as indistinct, but savage, roaring. "Dinosaurs! We have dinosaurs attacking the St. Canard City Bank!"
The Liquidator and Megavolt shot each other disbelieving glances. "Dinosaurs?" Megavolt said.
"I…um…" The Liquidator shrugged. "Let's go over there and see. Maybe Phyros ate something and grew to giant size."
"Oh I hope not." Megavolt muttered.
The two of them sped away, Megavolt staying as far away as politely possible from the Liquidator. He knew the pair of them were a bad team. Megavolt preferred to work with either Bushroot or Quackerjack. He preferred to work with Bushroot out of all of them, because the plant mutant was the most even tempered of them all. He and Quackerjack just usually ended up arguing about the most inane things, and even though he could admit that it didn't change the fact that the clown just rubbed him the wrong way. He couldn't help but fight with Quackerjack, and it seemed like Quackerjack just couldn't stop fighting with him. Still, the two of them seemed to click in battle, and he couldn't shake the feeling that it was somehow right that they be on the same team. Still, they still fought. Despite this, however, Megavolt just plan didn't like to be around the Liquidator. It was irrational, and was mostly a case of being once bitten, twice shy. The Liquidator wasn't a bad guy, but the stuff he was made off shorted out Megavolt badly, and he hated to be shorted out.
Megavolt was aware, on a basic level, that having too much or too little electricity stored inside of him was bad, after two truly terrifying incidents when he was a teenager. He had accidently slipped into a pond, and shorted out. When he woke up he realized that he couldn't remember who he was or where he was or what he had been doing. The feeling of having his mind basically wiped by that terrified him, so he avoided water wherever he could. That hadn't happened the very first time he had shorted out, and that terrified him even more. He thought that it might get worse with every dip he took, but that wasn't really a theory he wanted to test. The second incident was when he tried to recharge the first time. He hadn't even tried to control the electricity he siphoned, and the effect was a rush of power, but also a jolt of something into his brain. Once again he couldn't remember where he was for a while, and from then on he was determined to keep his energy siphoning slow and steady. His mind didn't need to be any more fried then it already was. His memory was poor enough now without turning it into Swiss cheese.
Still, he had feeling this discomfort with the Liquidator might be affecting the team as a whole. Sure he argued with Quackerjack, but there wasn't that much tension between them anymore, at least not after the night he told Quackerjack his real name. The fighting was simply something the two of them did, as if by unspoken agreement, and the tension was gone. However, though they didn't fight at all, there was a lot of tension between himself and the Liquidator. Megavolt didn't know if it was his fault or not. But it was there, and he didn't like it.
Megavolt climbed a telephone pole and started to skate. He wondered if he may need to get a better mode of transportation. He thought he would really like a car of some sort, maybe something with stripes. Something electrical. Yeah, that would be cool.
They made it to the bank, to the sight of several police cars blocking the steps up to the building. Megavolt recognized the Four's friend, Officer Bulba, standing there with a megaphone and a slightly incredulous expression. Beside him trembled Officer Hannigan, who looked petrified as usual. Megavolt's eyes turned to the door of the bank, which had been crushed to pieces and left scattered on the steps.
Megavolt leaped from the telephone pole to the ground, as the Liquidator reformed near Officer Bulba, who gave him a friendly nod.
"You heard." Officer Bulba said with a smile. He knew that they were listening in on the police frequency, and he approved.
"Is it really dinosaurs?" Megavolt asked.
"Seem to be." Bulba said. "They look like them at least. Not like normal lizards. I just saw one though, he looks like a stegsomething."
"Stegosaurs?" The Liquidator asked.
"Right, that." Bulba nodded.
"Well, let's go." Megavolt said, and the Liquidator nodded. Both of them ignored the sigh of relief coming from Officer Hannigan. The pair of them rushed at the open hole were the door used to be. The two of them leaped through and split in two different directions, Megavolt going left and the Liquidator going right.
Megavolt and the Liquidator burst through the door of the bank, Megavolt with his electricity gun in hand and the Liquidator forming a ball of water in his fist, ready for a throw. Megavolt's eyes slid to the normal group of huddling masses by the window. By now the banks of St. Canard had installed large stone walls blocking off the left and right walls, so that when they banks were robbed the citizens would have something to huddle behind. There were ten or twelve people ducked behind there, some were even crouched down reading newspapers. After the first five times this happened to you, the entire bank hostage thing turned almost into part of the routine.
Megavolt and the Liquidator focused on the dinosaur that was currently reaching into the vault and was stuffing gold bars into a large bag. The dinosaur had apparently ripped the vault door right off the hinges, and was lying on the floor a few feet away in a twisted heap. The two heroes blinked a bit at the sight.
"Always knew that this job would involve dinosaurs at one point." The Liquidator said.
"Next week it'll probably be aliens." Megavolt muttered as he stepped forwards. "Alright, lizard. Put the money down."
Stegmutt glanced over his shoulder and scowled. He growled in the direction of the vault and jerked his head towards the two heroes. Terrible snarling came from the vault, and three creatures sprung out. Megavolt and the Liquidator recognized two of them instantly.
"Quackerjack!" Megavolt shouted, at the same time the Liquidator yelled. "Bushroot!"
Megavolt stared in horror at what used to be their friends. It was easy to recognize Quackerjack, as even though his body had changed parts of his cloths had remained, including his fluffy clown collar. Only now, instead of being around a duck's neck, the collar was now around a scaly red throat. Quackerjack now had a saurian head, shaped almost like a bullet, with long sharp teeth jutting out from his upper jaw. He had long, skinny arms with only three fingers. No, not fingers, claws. Huge claws that looked as if they could rip a man to shreds. His legs were also long and looked like they were used for leaping. There was a huge, razor sharp claw where his big toe used to be. It was curved almost in the shape of a crescent moon. Quackerjack's scaly hide was bright red, with dark blue stripes. His eyes seemed to hold almost no thoughts left within them.
If anything Bushroot was worse. He was an odd combination of reptile and plant. The reptile was obviously the same species as Quackerjack, but instead of long claws and fangs, Bushroot's roots had grown until they were sharp and shaped like claws. He even had a pair of sharp crescent shaped thorns on his feet. There was a little ring of what looked like fern leaves around his neck, framing his head. He turned his thorn filled maw towards Megavolt and opened his mouth, hissing in aggression.
Neither the Liquidator nor Megavolt knew the other creature, a huge four legged thing with huge, heavy, but almost rodent ish head. It had long saber fangs, and the body was almost reminiscent of a komodo dragon, but the legs were straight beneath it, instead of splayed out. Megavolt was almost glad that he didn't recognize it. The sight of Quackerjack and Bushroot was bad enough.
Stegmutt jerked his head again and the three creatures began to stalk towards the Liquidator and Megavolt. Quackerjack stalked to their left, and the Bushroot went to the right, with Fluffy going straight towards them, mouth open and drooling.
Megavolt, however, had only eyes for Stegmutt. "What did you do to them?" He snarled.
Stegmutt looked up for a second, and snorted. He went back to stuffing gold bars into his sack.
"Hey!" Megavolt, enraged that Stegmutt was ignoring him, stepped forwards again, only to be attacked by Fluffy, who lunged at him with saber fangs bared. Megavolt grabbed Fluffy by the teeth and sent a bolt through the animal, who leaped back in pain. Megavolt, not even looking at the Liquidator, hopped on Fluffy's head and jumped at Stegmutt, who didn't even spare him a glance. Megavolt ran towards Stegmutt with sparking hands, ready to shock the beast and get him to change his friends back!
Megavolt could halfway sense something coming for him, and he turned, his hand unconsciously lashing out. His sparking hands smacked the red muzzle of Quackerjack, and blasted him backwards. Quackerjack squealed and whimpered, his eyes widened in pain. He skidded back a few feet, tail waving as he flew. Megavolt gasped and ran over to the fallen duck turned dinosaur.
"Quackerjack, I'm sorry! Are you-AHHHH!" Megavolt leaned forwards to try and help his friend, when Quackerjack lunged forwards and bit Megavolt on the arm, fangs sinking deeply into the electric rat's flesh. Megavolt feel backwards as Quackerjack bore him to the ground, snarling in anger. Megavolt gaped at Quackerjack.
"Quackerjack! Stop, it's me!" Megavolt shouted at Quackerjack who didn't seem to understand him. "Come on, it's me! It's Megavolt!" Still no recognition. Megavolt saw something yellow swinging around, and looked. He noticed that doll, Mr. Banana Brain, that Quackerjack always kept with him. I was hanging from a scrap of thread, swinging somewhere near Quackerjack's thigh. Gritting his teeth in pain, Megavolt reached out and grabbed it, snapping it off of Quackerjack. Quackerjack shook his head, slinging Megavolt's arm around back and forth, apparently not noticing he was now down one doll.
Megavolt held Mr. Banana Brain out in front of him, so Quackerjack could see it. For a moment Quackerjack stopped, and he even opened his mouth, letting Megavolt pull his arm away. For a second a flicker of recognition appeared in Quackerjack's eyes, but then he snarled and slashed Mr. Banana Brain away with his huge claws. He snarled and went for Megavolt's neck.
A stream of water splashed into Quackerjack and sent him flying across the room to the land against a wall with a huge splat. Megavolt screamed and slide away from the water.
"Watch it, you idiot!" Megavolt screamed.
The Liquidator glared at him. "Watch your tone." He said.
"You can kill me with that stuff!" Megavolt said as he leaped to his feet.
"Good idea." Stegmutt growled as he stomped over. Megavolt didn't know that such a huge creature could move so fast. He barely had time to move before the huge tail swung, and hit him right on the back. He flew forwards and found himself struck against the Liquidator's entire body. Worse yet, he didn't even go through. The water gripped him against the Liquidator, and he could feel the energy coursing through both of them, draining from him and going to the ground.
Stegmutt didn't pay them any more mind. He just took his bag and left, taking the other three with him. Megavolt and the Liquidator were both immobile, unable to do anything about it. They could only watch as Stegmutt took both the money, and their friends, away.
Taurus Bulba had to duck as the four dinosaurs crashed through the cop cars, appearing to shrug off the bullets thanks to their thick hides. The cop glared as the dinosaurs stomped down the street, and to his irritation they were soon out of sight. And unfortunately their little run through the now overturned cop cars prevented him from following. Sure, he could radio in, and he was indeed doing such right now. However, he knew that it was unlikely anyone would be following the perp. Not for the first time Bulba couldn't help but wonder why St. Canard managed to attract the worse cops in the country.
"Taurus? Someone's c-c-c-coming." Hammerhead said quietly beside him. Bulba nodded. He knew that the other officer was coward, but he also knew that he was loyal. And the guy had a nose for danger. Bulba knew that if he ever was in danger Hammerhead would let him know. It would be very easy to tell.
Bulba turned and noted the black car coming towards them. It was shiny, but nondescript. You couldn't even tell what model it was. Save for the tinted windows it would have looked like an average car. Bulba's eyes narrowed. He knew that car.
Sure enough, the well dressed, white suited rooster that stepped out of the car was familiar to Bulba. Especially since he had a steel beak.
"Where's the limo?" Bulba asked Steelbeak sardonically.
"Not effective for this, babe." Steelbeak smiled. "What with all the…interesting things going on, it's not such a good idea."
"Interesting things?" Bulba said, not giving anything away to the fed. He didn't like Steelbeak. At all.
"Oh, you know…" Steelbeak kept his hands clasped behind his back as he walked forwards, still smiling. Bulba would have thought that a man that smiled as much as Quackerjack did would be nice. But there was just something about Steelbeak that Bulba didn't like. Every time he saw the rooster he wanted to hit him with a rocket or something. "Things like Gizmoduck…our four friends being invited to balls…" Steelbeak paused.
"What does the Four's social life have to do with you?" Bulba asked.
Steelbeak didn't answer. Instead he said. "What about dinosaurs?"
"What about dinosaurs?" Bulba asked.
"I don't know, I just got here."
"If you are trying to say something, say it." Bulba growled.
"Let's just say that I've been hearing some bad rumors. Rumors about the Four, and Negaduck."
"They are the best hope we have for this city, and you know that, Agent Steelbeak. And you better make sure the government, especially your agency, knows that as well."
For a second Officer Bulba thought he saw a flash of…something in Steelbeak's eyes. "I've been sent here to keep an eye on things. I want to work with you, Bulba, you and our friends. I don't want any trouble. We have the same goals."
"That remains to be seen, Agent." Bulba growled.
Steelbeak turned from him and eyed the bank door. "You think we should be checking on them, instead of arguing here."
Bulba grunted and nodded. He hated to admit that Steelbeak was right, but he was. Bulba followed Steelbeak as he walked up the stairs to the bank, keeping his eye on Steelbeak. Steelbeak walked with confidence of a man without a single doubt in his head. That would make one of them, as Bulba spent most of his time doubting.
The two of them entered the building, and for the first time Bulba got to see Steelbeak's calm façade drop a little bit. Bulba, on the other hand, was shocked, and he didn't care to hide it.
The Liquidator was splashed into almost a complete puddle state, his water running everywhere, all over the floor. Megavolt was sitting in the middle of the puddle, looking around with a dazed expression on his face. He looked up and gave the two of them a puzzled look.
"Hello, who are you?" He asked.
"Megavolt, it's me." Bulba said, concerned.
"Who's me again?" Megavolt asked.
Bulba's eyes widened. "Detective Bulba. St. Canard Police! We've known each other for years!"
"Uhhh, are you sure?" Megavolt asked as the puddle of Liquidator managed to ooze away and started to reform. The water dog had a concerned look on his face. Megavolt turned and looked at the Liquidator, and he screamed and backed away. "Water! Get away!"
The Liquidator frowned. "What's the matter with you, Megavolt? We've known each other for a while now! We're on the same team!"
"Team? What team? What are you talking about?" Megavolt glared at him.
"Megavolt, are you feeling okay?" Steelbeak frowned in concern.
"Who are you!" Megavolt screamed, looking very very confused.
"Look…Megavolt…what's the last thing you remember?" Steelbeak asked.
Megavolt glared at him. "I don't remember, you clod! If I remembered I wouldn't be this confused!"
"Wait, how can you know that you don't remember what you remembered last if you don't remember it?" The Liquidator asked. Everyone looked at him. "It's a legitimate question." The Liquidator said. "Look, you and I are on the same team, with Quackerjack and Bushroot!"
"Yeah? Who and where are they?" Megavolt snarled.
"Ummm, they've been turned into a pair of dinosaurs." The Liquidator said.
"What?" Three incredulous voices asked at once.
"I think it has something to do with the green stegosaurs…person. I think he did something to Bushroot and Quackerjack. Most likely when they went to see Dr. Fossil." The Liquidator said.
Steelbeak frowned. "He does have a lot of theories about Retro Evolution." He said.
"Retro what?" Bulba asked. "And how do you know?"
"Retro Evolution is the process of de-evolving a creature from its current form to a less evolved one. And I know because it's my job to know. But I also know that Dr. Fossil won't create a gang of dinosaurs. He's got a good reputation."
"So why did they attack us?" The Liquidator asked.
"Ah, it might or might not work on the minds of the victim. I don't know." Steelbeak said. "Theoretically there is a fifty fifty chance that the mind would devolve along with the body, but there are theory's that suggests that the effect would only be gradual, and depends on the individual."
"They seemed to follow the stegasaur's motions, like he was commanding them. He never said a word though…mind control?" The Liquidator asked.
"Could be…" Steelbeak said.
"You guys have fun with this. I'm going." Megavolt strolled away.
"Wait! Megavolt!" The Liquidator started after him. Megavolt turned to the Liquidator and snarled, backing away.
"You, get away from me!"
Steelbeak opened his metallic mouth to say something, but all of a sudden a thing on his waist beeped. It looked like a small television screen. He sighed and took it off the clip on his belt. "Hold that thought, okay?" He walked a few feet away and started to talk the device, and all the while Bulba watching him, suspicion on his face.
The Liquidator took Megavolt aside and was trying to talk to him, but Bulba could tell that it wasn't taking very well, especially with the mistrustful looks Megavolt was shooting the Liquidator. Bulba's eyes turned to Steelbeak, who was now speaking very sharply to the communicator in his hand. It was hard to tell his expressions with the metal beak, but Bulba thought from the straight, tight way the fed held himself that he didn't like what he was hearing. Bulba didn't know how to feel about that.
Finally, Steelbeak shut the communicator with a growl and walked over to the group. "Guys, we got a big problem." He said grimly.
"Oh, goodie." Bulba rolled his eyes.
"This is serious." Steelbeak's normally light, casual tone was replaced by a stern one, and for once he sounded almost like the federal agent he was supposed to be. "If we don't work fast it could be too late for Bushroot and Quackerjack!"
"What?" Bulba glanced his fists aggressively. "If you do anything to hurt them, I'll-"
"It's not me, it's my bosses!" Steelbeak said. "They want this threat gone, and now. I don't know why they suddenly decided it was this urgent, but they have. And if they don't get results in two hours, they are sending in the X Squad."
"Is that the one with the otherworldly alien mutant powers?" The Liquidator asked dryly.
"No, it stands for exterminate." Steelbeak said grimly.
"…I thought those were called the S.W.A.T team?" Bulba said.
"No, that's for normal things, like mad bombers and crazy basement dwellers with dungeons under their floors." Steelbeak said casually. "You'd be surprised at how many there are…anyway, the X Squad is for taking out more…ah…unnatural things. Magicians, aliens, that kind of thing. Technically they work for my department, but they aren't under my control."
"How can they be in your department if they aren't under your command?" Bulba asked, confused.
"Ya know the government. More red tape then an office supply store." Steelbeak snorted. "Without the fun rubber band balls. Ya see, the X Squad is part of Department C, which is technically the Odd Things department. We take care, basically, of things like you." Steelbeak pointed at the Liquidator.
"You mentioned that." The Liquidator said. "You're basically the guys from the television show. What was that thing called again?"
"The Twilight Files?" Bulba supplied.
"Yeah, that one. The one with the guy with the big beak…he's not based on you, is he?" The Liquidator asked Steelbeak.
"I don't know what you're talking about, babe." Steelbeak said innocently.
"…why are you idiots talking about television shows when some people, who you apparently liked, are gonna be hunted and killed in a few hours?" Megavolt stared at them all.
"Ah! I nearly forgot!" Steelbeak screamed. "The head of Department C wants those dinos knocked off unless we can contain them in two hours."
"Why?"
"When I find out, I'll let you guys know." Steelbeak frowned. "They don't always tell me why they give the orders they give. High Command of the FBI is funny that way. They said they sent me here to keep a handle on all these odd things happening at St. Canard. I mean, four super powered beings…okay, technically three. Negaduck. Phyros, those two weirdoes Khola and Dingo, rumors of magical activity, Gizmoduck…it's strange. Then the Voice shows up!"
"Wait, you know the Voice?" The Liquidator asked.
"Well, yeah. Ran across her a few times over the years. She gets the job done. Bad methods though."
"I thought you said that-"The Liquidator looked at Megavolt, who screamed.
"I don't know what the hell you people are talking about!" Megavolt held his hands against his temples and started to walk away. "Just go away!"
For a second the three of them watched him wander away, and then the Liquidator flowed past him, then in front of him. "Hold on!"
"Get away from me…water…dog…thing!" Megavolt jumped away, nearly right into Steelbeak, who grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Woah, woah, woah, babe, relax." Steelbeak said. "Now, what's the last thing you remember?"
"If I remembered, I wouldn't be having memory problems! You!" He glared at the Liquidator. "You shorted me out!"
"Viewers agree that stegosaurs knocked you into me! The Liquidator can't be held responsible for crimes he has not committed."
"I can't trust you!"
"Megavolt, listen to me, please." Steelbeak said. "I know ya don't remember me, and you don't remember the other four, but you've been a hero for a long time. I know you can't stand by and let someone be killed if you can help! Quackerjack and Bushroot need you, and so does whoever else has been changed and used by that stegosaurs! Can you really turn away from them?"
Megavolt stared at him and shook his head. No one could tell if he was agreeing or disagreeing with Steelbeak.
"Megavolt, I know you don't like me, I even know why." The Liquidator said. "I'm made of water. I can't change that. But Quackerjack and Bushroot need us. I can't do it without you!"
Megavolt looked at him and sighed deeply. "Alright, alright. I'll do it." Megavolt said.
"Right, let's get going." Steelbeak said, walking off.
"Where are we going?" Bulba's eyes were still narrowed.
"To see Dr. Fossil. He's the guy who knows about gene splicing and dinosaurs." Steelbeak said.
"Plus, it's where Quackerjack and Bushroot went." The Liquidator said.
"Alright, let's go." Megavolt glared at the Liquidator. "But I have my eye on you."
"And I have my eye on you." Bulba snarled at Steelbeak.
Steelbeak rolled his eyes. "I am really the only one who trusts everyone else?"
"Yes." Three voices said at the same time.
"Beautiful." Steelbeak grumbled.
The Liquidator didn't think he'd ever been involved in a more awkward car ride in his life. Megavolt had taken the left back seat, with his back almost pressed against the wall in an effort to keep himself near an exit. Bulba sat next to him, glaring at the back of Steelbeak's head. The Liquidator was beside Bulba. Order to make Megavolt less likely to bail, he had pressed himself against the door as well. Steelbeak kept looking at the mirror above him, as if to reassure himself that they were still there. They were being driven by a strange man with an egg shaped helmet, who Steelbeak called an Eggman. The Liquidator was sure what that was about. The Eggman also looked back at them on occasion, looking slightly awed.
"Ohhhhh, geeeeraaat." Steelbeak poked his head out of the car window and groaned. "There's our destination, and look who decided to be fashionably early?"
The Liquidator and Megavolt poked their heads out of the car window, while Bulba leaned forwards and peeked out the window. There was a small building sitting near the tree line, the entrance to Dr. Fossil's underground lab. The Liquidator remembered that Dr. Fossil worked in the museum, and the underground lab was a part of it. You could enter from the building itself, or an emergency exit in the woods. Despite the trees you could still see the outline of the museum in the distance. It was to the emergency exit the four were going towards. From this angle the entrance looked like an outhouse, and not a lab. For Dr. Fossil it had not been a question of hiding, but a question of space. Sitting in front of the outhouse like building was a black van.
"Do they always drive in black vans?" Megavolt asked.
"Black vans, helicopters, plans, cars…" Steelbeak rolled his eyes. "Black suits, sunglasses…now you know why I like white so much. I hate conformity. Besides, white is better for my complexion."
"I am sure that your complexion should always be taken in consideration when deciding your attire." Bulba rolled his eyes. "What are we to do about the party van there?"
"Floyd, pull over into the trees there." Steelbeak said, and Floyd complied. "Okay, here is what we are going to do. Megavolt and the Liquidator are going in that place and they are going to find the stegosaurs, find Dr. Fossil and rescue our friends. Meanwhile, me and Bulba are gonna stall the clowns over there."
"Stall them, how?" Bulba asked.
"And can't the non-water guy go with me?" Megavolt said, ignoring the Liquidators wince of hurt.
"I can answer both at once. You, Bulba, have a badge. You have authority that a vigilante like the Liquidator doesn't have. You can go over there and them the whole this is my case, this is my jurisdiction, this is my badge you shall not pass thing and actually have a reason for it. As for me, I am a fellow agent, and I can hit them where it hurts the most."
"Where?" Bulba asked.
"Pop the trunk, Floyd." Floyd did as he was told. Steelbeak jumped out of the car and rummaged through the trunk. He returned with a bundled stack of papers, and Bulba's eyes widened in horror.
"You didn't!" He gasped.
"I did." Steelbeak smirked. "I got…paperwork!"
The leader of X Squad groaned a bit when he saw Steelbeak strolling up, followed by a huge blue bull with a stern expression. The leader was a large brown wolverine with a patch of white fur along his forehead. He wore a black suit and tie, with black sunglasses. His second was a black feathered duck, similarly attired.
"Oh no, not him." The duck said. "What are we going to do, Agent Logan?"
"Let's hope we can get rid of him." Agent Logan snarled. "Get the men ready, Ash."
Ash nodded and jumped into the back of the van. The sounds of rattling and soon the van was rocking a bit. Agent Logan knew that Ash was distributing the big guns.
Steelbeak strolled over and raised an eyebrow. "Why, look Detective. The van's a rockin'!"
"Don't be crude, Steelbeak." Logan said. "It's beneath you."
"Yeah, and speaking of things beneath me, babe, weren't you supposed to be on a plane right now?"
"I chose to be…punctual."
"Two hours early isn't punctual. That's called going behind you superior's back." Steelbeak said.
"I don't answer to you."
"Yeah? My position in the Agency says you do."
"You're position is not that of my direct superior." Logan growled. "You might as well go back to commanding that janitor of yours. You have no authority over me or my men."
"Okay, now you're insulting my men. That I don't like." Steelbeak said.
"Your men? Your 'men' are halfway comprised of women-"
"Oh great, now he's being sexist." Steelbeak leaned against the van. "Hey, lady agents in there! You're boss is a sexist pig!"
"Schoolyard taunts now?" Logan said wryly. "Oh how the mighty have fallen!"
"Hey, I tell the truth, Loggy." Steelbeak smiled. "Me, I like the ladies…"
"…you disgust me. Both of you." Bulba said.
"Aww, you wound me, babe." Steelbeak said.
"Who the hell are you?" Ash stuck his head out of the van and glared at both Bulba and Steelbeak.
"Ah! How's it going Ash!" Steelbeak grinned. "You doing the rockin' in there!"
"…you've been spending time with Hotshot and Flygirl, haven't you?" Ash's eyes went back to Bulba. "Who are you, cow?"
Bulba glared. "I am not a cow, duckling." Ash bristled. "And who the hell are you?"
"Who wants to know?"
"Detective Taurus Bulba. This is my town, chicken-"
"Duck. That's the chicken." Ash pointed at Steelbeak, who grinned.
"And no one is parking vans in a no parking zone in my town." Bulba pulled out a pad of paper and started write. "Let's see, illegal double park. Public indecency…"
"What! I am fully clothed!"
"…stupidity."
"That's not a crime!"
"So you admit it then?" Bulba smirked.
"You despicable little…"
"Get out of my way, poultry!" Logan tired to shove past Steelbeak, who was now having the time of his life. "I have reptiles to kill!"
"Ah ah ah!" Steelbeak grinned. "I got something you forgot, Loggy!"
"What…the hell?" Logan growled.
"Ya forgot to sign all of these!" Steelbeak dropped a bundle of papers on the ground. Thousands of forms flew through the air. "Ya need authorization! From me…now start filling."
Logan stared from the papers to Steelbeak. "I have orders from High Command! I don't need to fill out papers!"
"I wonder how it'll look on your record when it gets out that you refused protocol."
"Protocol!" Logan screamed. "You're the one who hired a cleaning lady, a garbage woman and a PAIR OF HIPPIES! In case you haven't noticed, WE ARE BEING ATTACKED BY DINOSAURS!"
"I don't see dinosaurs, do you see dinosaurs?" Steelbeak said with a look at Bulba.
"I see this. I cannot tell if he is evolved enough to qualify as a bird." Bulba said to Ash, who looked like he was going to punch the bull.
"Look, you were supposed to be here in two hours. Just enough time to fill all this out!" Steelbeak said with a grin that suggested that Christmas was early. "If you're fast it could be an hour and a half!"
"And if I say no?"
"Logan." Steelbeak's flippant tone changed again, to a deadly one that actually put a chill down Bulba's spine, though he didn't show it. Steelbeak's eyes narrowed to dangerous points. "If you push me, I will make sure you suffer for it. You know that."
Logan snarled. He began to gather the papers, still growling at Steelbeak. "You'll get yours, one day."
"Yeah, maybe you're right." Steelbeak's casual tone was back, and he smoothed the feathers on his head against his head, looking smug.
"I hate you so much, Steelbeak."
"I love you too, babe."
Megavolt and the Liquidator searched through the trees, trying to find another entrance to the lab. Megavolt stayed as far away from the Liquidator as he could, keeping his distance. It was becoming very annoying to the Liquidator.
"Wait! Over there!" The Liquidator pointed towards a sharp dip in the earth. He sloshed towards it and peered over the edge. There was an old storm drain, obviously unused for a while. "I think this goes straight towards the museum, and it's underground! We might be able to go through here. Let's go."
Megavolt hesitated, and the Liquidator finally had enough. He turned to Megavolt and snarled. "Look, I don't have time to baby you, Megavolt! Come or stay, I don't care anymore!"
"I thought we were on the same team." Megavolt scoffed.
"If you really can walk away from the others like this, I'm not sure I want to be on a team with you at all." The Liquidator said coldly. He turned away and entered the drain. He looked back after few steps, but Megavolt didn't come. The Liquidator continued forwards for five minutes, and then looked back again. Megavolt still wasn't there.
Ten minutes later, and the Liquidator stopped expecting Megavolt to come with him. Instead he marched on. He desperately tried to tell himself that it didn't matter. Who needed Megavolt and his suspicions and moodiness? Without that rat he wouldn't be scrutinized at all hours of the day! Yes, it was much better this way…that was what the Liquidator told himself.
The drain was a dry as a bone anyway, no way Megavolt would have gotten wet in here! How paranoid could you get? It was so annoying. The Liquidator brooded till he saw a bit of light at the end of the tunnel, coming from the roof. The Liquidator speed up and found himself below a drain. He could see a brick cell above him, and there was something moving around up there. The Liquidator poked a bit of water upwards and tried to get a better look at the thing. All he could really see was a redish lump in the corner of a cage. The Liquidator fit some more water through, and it formed his head.
"Hey, are you okay?" Liquidator was fairly sure that anyone in a cage at this place was probably an ally. The thing started and whirled around, and the Liquidator gasped. The creature was another dinosaur! A red one with wings. Weren't they called pteradons? The dinosaur's eyes widened, and to the Liquidator's amazement he saw that the dinosaur was wearing a pair of small round spectacles.
"Liquidator! Tell me that's really you!"
"Dr. Fossil!" The Liquidator exclaimed. "What happened?"
"It's been terrible!" Dr. Fossil said. "I created this device, this Retro-Evolution Gun, and...And it's all turned out wrong!"
"Wait, stop and go back to the beginning. Research shows that following events in order will help with the coherency of the tale."
Dr. Fossil nodded. "I wanted to better chart the evolution of a creature. To see what the steps really are between the modern day animal and the prehistoric one. One of the greatest mysteries of our world is the abundance of intelligent species and their related animal cousins.. Rats, ducks, mice, dogs, bears, cats, they all have animal relatives. Yet we all have similar characteristics like arms and hands and legs. I wanted to see if I can spread some light on our evolutionary trees, so I created a deceive that could devolve and evolve animals and people. I hped that by doing that I could chart the evolution of life."
"That…is some pretty mad science." The Liquidator said.
"I know, it was a mistake! My first experiment was okay. It was a cat I adopted named Fluffy. He devolved into a Gorgonopsid."
"A what?"
"It's a big prehistoric lizard from the late Permian period. But thing was, Fluffy still acted like a cat. He was a big cat, but still a cat. It was going well. I was just about to get some more animals, but then Stegmutt showed up." Dr. Fossil made a face. "I thought he was just a friendly janitor. I should have suspected something when I found him snooping in my lab, but he was really good at acting dumb. He found my device and Fluffy, and used it on himself. His brain had devolved as well, and he just seemed so pathetic! I mean, really he was like a five year old. I should have left him like that, but I just' couldn't! I created something to advance his intelligence, but once he got his brain back I found out what he was really like! He's a con! A crook. He used the Retro Evolution gun on me, and turned me into a dinosaur as well. Then he used the mind enhancer in reverse, on Fluffy. Fluffy acts like a real prehistoric monster now!"
"What about my friends! And why is Stegmutt doing this?" The Liquidator asked.
"They arrived here a few hours ago, and Stegmutt used the devices on them. He turned them into dinosaurs as well. They look like either Deinonychus or Utahraptors to me. Something along those lines. Stegmutt knows how to command the dinosaurs he uses the devices on, and he's planning on using them to rob banks and stores. He's almost completely driven by money. He wants to make his own dinosaur gang, maybe even challenge Negaduck!"
The Liquidator shook his head. "Not that I object to making trouble for Negaduck, but we can't let this prehistoric perpetrator do this! And we have to help my friends!"
"If I get my claws on those devices, I can turn everyone back into ducks, and fix their brains as well!" If you can just get me out of here…"
"The Liquidator provides fast and easy service with a smile! Guaranteed to help you recover lost work from miscreants and charlatans!" The Liquidator oozed out of the drain entirely and oozed out of the door and to the lock. To his pleasure the lock was electronic. One blast of the Liquidator's water and the thing was shorted out, and it feel to the ground. The Liquidator opened the door with a flourish. Dr. Fossil limped out.
"Are you alright?" The Liquidator asked.
Dr. Fossil nodded. "Stegmutt likes to slam people against walls. He's a brute."
"Why are you out of your cage, doc?"
Dr. Fossil trembled and turned, along with the Liquidator. He stared at the big stegosaur and the three under his thrall.
"Quackerjack! Bushroot! Snap out of it!"
"Don't even try. They can't understand you." Stegmutt smiled. "They're just dumb animals now!"
"The only animal in this room is you." The Liquidator snarled.
Stegmutt's eyes narrowed. He reached for a panel on the wall and smashed it in. Instantly four objects, like torrents, arose from the floor and fired off what the Liquidator at first thought was smoke. However, when the smoke touched him he felt his water start to freeze. The Liquidator yelped and tried to move, but now his feet were stuck to the floor. Dr. Fossil, on the other hand, managed to leap into the air and disappear amongst the rafters. Stegmutt snarled at Bushroot and Quackerjack, who hissed and leaped on the cage ceilings, then towards the rafters. They chased after the madly flapping Dr. Fossil.
Stegmutt, followed by Fluffy, strolled over to the Liquidator. "You really think I didn't come up with contingency plans for the rest of your little hero society or whatever you are called? I can make the last member of your team a dinosaur…but what am I going to do with water…" Stegmutt smiled. "Let's see what this does to your mind!" Stegmutt aimed the mind enhancer on the Liquidator. The Liquidator struggled, but he was flash frozen. Yes he was melting, but not fast enough. He wondered what would happen. Would he just collapse into a mindless puddle? Constantly evaporated and recycled like all water was, but unable to use his mind to form himself? Would he even be aware of the change? Would this...would this be like dying? The Liquidator was afraid.
Just as Stegmutt was about to pull the trigger, a bolt of lightning erupted from the archway where Stegmutt and the dinosaurs had just come in from. Stegmutt fell forwards two steps, and turned, his tail swinging. The Liquidator felt his body shatter into a million pieces. There was dull pain, but he was alive. He was in pieces, but he would melt and reform soon enough!
"No!" The nasally voice made the Liquidator's spirit soar. It was Megavolt! He hadn't abandoned them after all!
Stegmutt aimed the two devices, duel wielding them like Negaduck could do with a pair of chainsaws. He aimed at Megavolt, who stood there defiantly against the dinosaur. The Liquidator struggled to reform a mouth, to warn Megavolt but he was just melting so slowly! All of a sudden there was a horrible screech, and a red blur darted in front of Stegmutt and grabbed the two devices with his hind claws. With another almost feral scream, Dr. Fossil beat Stegmutt over the head with his huge wings. He and Stegmutt struggled for a brief moment, when Fluffy rushed over, landing on Dr. Fossil's back and cutting into his head with his huge fangs. Stegmutt roared bit Dr. Fossil on the neck. It seemed to the Liquidator that Dr. Fossil was…fiddling with the mind ray. All of a sudden Dr. Fossil slipped to the ground, little rivulets of blood trickling from his head and neck. Stegmutt howled in triumph and turned the mind ray on him.
Just before he fired Dr. Fossil lashed out with his foot and jostled the aim of the weapon. It hit Fluffy square in the face. Fluffy reared back.
Stegmutt roared at Fluffy, obviously telling him to attack, but instead of obeying Fluffy looked at him with an aloof expression.
"Meeeeeow?" The cat turned dinosaur said.
Stegmutt looked from the mind device to Fluffy (who was now cleaning himself with a pawish foot) and then to Dr. Fossil. "You…you…You ruined everything!"
Stegmutt picked up Dr. Fossil by the neck and started to slam him against a wall, repeatedly. "I *slam* was going *slam* to be rich *slam*! I was going *slam* to have everything I ever *slam* wanted! And you ruined for me *slam*! You little *slam* pencil *slam* necked *slam*twerp! I'm gonna kill you *slam* *slam*!"
Fluffy screeched and lunged, biting Stegmutt on the tail. Stegmutt dropped Dr. Fossil and turned, taking a chunk of the wall with him. Fluffy scratched, bite and clawed, and it was too much for Stegmutt. He fled, screaming at them all, Fluffy on his heels.
"I'll get you back, Friendly Four! I'll get you back, Fossil! And you little cat too!" Stegmutt's voice faded away.
Unfortunately there was no one there to pursue them. The Liquidator was barely half formed. Dr. Fossil was on the ground, moaning in pain. And Megavolt...
Megavolt now faced two wild dinosaurs, with no Stegmutt to guide them. Quackerjack and Bushroot prowled around him, hissing and in the case of Quackerjack, drooling. Quackerjack lunged for Megavolt, claws slicing the air. Megavolt dodged, unwilling to use his electricity on a friend, even if he couldn't remember who that friend was. Bushroot prowled behind, apparently less willing to fight.
Slowly, like he was walking through mud, the Liquidator reformed. His water was still half frozen, and he crunched when he moved, like a slushy. He slowly managed to pick up the mind ray.
"Meeeggaaavooolt!" The Liquidator tossed the thing to Megavolt, who caught it. To the Liquidator's horror the water in his body must have hit a circuit or something, because the device sparked a bit in Megavolt's hand. Megavolt yelped and jumped. For a second a puzzled look crossed his face, then his eyes widened.
"Hey! I can remember now! Thanks Likky!" Megavolt grinned, and Quackerjack decided to remind them all of his presence. The duck turned dinosaur snapped at Megavolt with his huge jaws and tried to take the rat's head. Megavolt ducked and backed away. He aimed the device and fired. Quackerjack seemed to freeze in place, and his eyes widened. Megavolt relaxed the trigger and turned the device on Bushroot, and after a few moments he also seemed shocked.
Quackerjack shook his head. "Huh? What…" He said.
"Give me, a few minutes, and I'll take care of the dinosaur thing." Dr. Fossil fiddled with his device and turned it on Quackerjack and Bushroot. In a few moments a very confused looking pair, now as normal as the two of them could get, were standing there.
"Ummm, what just happened? Why do I feel the need to eat raw meat?" Quackerjack asked.
"I feel scaly." Bushroot shuddered.
"Let me just-"Dr. Fossil said, but before he could do anything else the Retro Evolution Gun shuddered in his hands, and broke into a thousand pieces. Dr. Fossil stared at the remains of his device, and then crushed the rest under his feet.
The Liquidator stared at him. "What did you do that for?"
Dr. Fossil hung his head. "This happened because I invented that thing. I created a monster, and he almost killed a bunch of good people! Who knows what else that lunatic will do! I…I'm going to destroy this lab. All of it. Even my notes." Dr. Fossil smiled. "I'm not one of those people with a super memory; I won't be able to remember how I made it. That's for the best, I think."
The Liquidator looked around the room and smiled. "I think I have an idea…"
An hour later the four emerged at the entrance were Megavolt and the Liquidator had seem Steelbeak. To everyone's amusement the agent had a very grumbly wolverine leaning on the side of a van, frantically filling out forms. Steelbeak was also leaning; him on a stump, and the rooster grinned and kept "encouraging" Agent Logan. Bulba was arguing fiercely with Ash.
"You can't talk to a government employee like that!" Ash shouted.
"I am a public servant of this city! I risk my life everyday to keep this city safe! You dare belittle my accomplishments!"
"What accomplishments! Your city is a cesspool!"
"I'd like to see you face Negaduck!"
"I'd like to see you kill a Yeti from fifteen paces away! While it charges!" Ash's neck was stuck out so much he looked like a giraffe.
"Hey, Dorks in Black!" Quackerjack laughed. "We took care of you dinosaur problem for you!"
"WHAT!" Agent Logan dropped the paperwork, ignoring Steelbeak's squawk of protest. Logan rushed into the building, shoving past Quackerjack and Megavolt. Steelbeak turned back and glanced at the two former dinosaurs, who grinned sheepishly at him.
A few minutes later Logan came back up, looking furious. "That place is trashed! And where are the dinosaurs?"
"Oh…Not here anymore." Megavolt let a spark play around his fingers. "Let's just say they won't be around anymore."
"You took them out yourselves?" Logan looked at him with disbelief.
"Like I said no problem." Megavolt said.
"Well then, I think that means you don't have to be here anymore. Hey, you know, I bet there are little chupacabras in Mexico or Sasquatch in the mountains that need you!" Steelbeak smiled. "Go away, Loggy. Go slay a dragon."
Logan took a deep breath, and then let it out. "Very well. Steelbeak…I hear that you had something to do with this, I'll go straight to High Command. In fact, I think I will go there right now!"
"Yeah, you do that Loggy. Don't let the van door hit your tail on the way out." Steelbeak smiled.
"Ash, move out." Logan snarled and got into the van. Ash gave Bulba one more murderous look and got in the van as well. The van pulled away, and was soon gone over the hill.
As soon as it was out of sight Bulba turned to Megavolt and said. "Well? What really happened?"
"Whatever do you mean?" Quackerjack said with false affrontedness.
"I know that you four are not killers. And I know that grin, Quackerjack." Bulba said.
"Come this way." The Liquidator said.
The four led Bulba and Steelbeak towards the drain. As they walked the Liquidator and Megavolt filled them in, each taking turns.
"I really thought that he was going to leave me." The Liquidator said with a hint of hurt in his voce.
"I'm sorry; I'm not going into a drain. I went to the museum and found another way, that's all." Megavolt said. He was aware that the Liquidator was acting a bit cold towards him. The Liquidator had barely looked at him. Megavolt knew that he had made a huge mistake, but he didn't know what to do. The jolt from the mind device had apparently restarted his memory, rebooted it somehow. He could remember everything in crystal clarity, and he knew he acted like an ass. He didn't know what to do though.
"So, where is Stegmutt, and Dr. Fossil?" Bulba asked.
Quackerjack frowned. "Fluffy came back, but we have no idea what happened to Stegmutt."
"That's gonna be a problem if Logan catches wind of him." Steelbeak said. "But from what you said, I don't think I'd rush to save him." Bushroot gave Steelbeak a hard, disappointed look.
"No one deserves to die, Steelbeak."
"…has anyone ever told you that you're way too soft?" Steelbeak asked.
"Two or three times a day." Bushroot said.
"Even as dinosaurs, Quackerjack was far more aggressive then Bushroot." The Liquidator said.
"Hey…I wasn't thinking…at all." Quackerjack looked up at the sky.
"No one is blaming you, Quacky." Megavolt said.
"Yeah…" Quackerjack grinned, but there was something forced about it.
"You're back!" Dr. Fossil's head appeared over the entrance to the storm drain. "I was worried."
"Steelbeak, this is my good friend Dr. Fossil. We think that Stegmutt will go after him, not to mention what normal people would do." Bushroot said. "Can you-"
"Oh, I think I know what you're gonna ask me." Steelbeak smiled. "Doc, you wanna come work for the Agency? I promise you room, board, three square meals a day and protection from evil dinosaurs. Of course, you'll have to contribute your mind to the cause!"
"What cause?" Dr. Fossil asked.
"Honesty, all those movies and tv shows have it wrong about us FBI. We aren't here to get the American people. We're the protectors, the defense force against evil! Our enemies are the nation's enemies! You work for us, you work for the people!" Steelbeak's voice was light, but there was something in his eyes that suggested that he was being totally honest and truthful with them. He wasn't just saying these things, he actually lived them. There was a great deal of dedication in his body language, and all at once even Bulba thought that perhaps they had misjudged the rooster.
Dr. Fossil nodded. "Is there room for two?" Fluffy poked his head up and mewed.
Steelbeak laughed. "Sure! The more the merrier! In fact…" He looked at the four and Bulba. "If any of you want to join us, then I'll make sure you get in! I'd love it if all of you worked with us!"
"Work with, yes." Megavolt said. "Work for, no. We like being a team of four. But, if you need us to help you, we'll do it."
Bulba nodded. "I want to know why you are here, Steelbeak. And, are there more of you?"
"Hey, there's only one Steelbeak, babe." The rooster grinned, and then it vanished. "But in all honesty…there are several reasons. I told you a few of them already. But…" Steelbeak sighed. "We got a lot of funny people working for us. Archeologists and astrologers. Psychics and scientists. Even a few magical folk. They almost never agree, but they do agree on one thing. There's something really bad coming. Coming soon."
"Like what?" Megavolt asked.
"Not sure. But all the strangeness that is going on here and few other places. Well we are keeping an eye on em. That's why we need you, and I don't care if you are employees or just allies. I need you. All of you. I'm not going to let innocent people suffer on my watch."
Megavolt nodded. "I see. We'll just have to face it when it comes."
"Yeah, I hate prophecies of doom. They never end up like you want." Steelbeak nodded at Dr. Fossil. "Shall we go?" Dr. Fossil nodded, and Steelbeak escorted him to the car.
"I got a bad feeling." Quackerjack said.
"I do too." Megavolt agreed. The four of them started to leave. None of them saw the pair of angry eyes that followed them as they left the forest.
"I'll get em." Stegmutt growled, and was about to follow when he felt a tug on his tail. He whirled around to face the business end of a machine gun.
"Hello." Lamont said. "I come from Negaduck. I have a business offer for you."
"What kind of offer?"
"The 'come and work for Negaduck' kind of offer."
"And if I say no?" Stegmutt's tail thumped on the ground.
Lamont cocked the machine gun and smiled. Stegmutt growled and backed down.
"Just think." Lamont said. "You can get revenge on the Friendly Four. And you will get a portion of the loot. It's not a bad deal, and if you refuse you get shot."
Stegmutt considered. He wanted to be the boss, not the help. ON the other hand not even his thick skull could repel bullets at that range. And he would still be getting his loot! And who knew? Negaduck might have a…accident…
"I'm in." The dinosaur said. Lamont grinned and motioned for Stegmutt to follow. The huge dinosaur fell in step behind him, grinning wickedly.
Back at the greenhouse, Megavolt was standing in the doorway to where the Liquidator was sitting, absorbed in helping Bushroot water his plants. Megavolt sighed and walked forwards. He was not looking forward to this. At all. The Liquidator had been avoiding him for hours.
"Liquidator, I-"
"Shut up." The Liquidator said, and Megavolt winched.
"I-"
"I don't want to hear it, Megavolt." The Liquidator walked towards him. "Do you realize what just happened?"
"Uh-"
"We have no way to get in contact with Steelbeak! Meaning we can't talk to Dr. Fossil." The Liquidator leaned forwards, and Megavolt struggled not to lean away. "I lost the one lead I had to my son! All because of that dinosaur! I'm very very angry right now, and I really don't care about you damn trust issues! Figure it out for yourself! Figure out if you are going to trust the rest of us or not, because right now I just don't care! Now buzz off!" With that the Liquidator marched away.
"I…I'm sorry." Megavolt said, but the Liquidator showed no sign that he heard. After a few moments Megavolt turned away and walked away.
He didn't stop till he had reached his lighthouse. The only home he really knew now.
He didn't come back for three days…
A/N: Logan's name is inspired by Wolverine from the comic books, just because when I came up with a wolverine that name just automatically popped up. He has no connection with the comic character other than that. And a temper, but that's just a wolverine thing.
Ash's name, on the other hand, comes from the character from the Evil Dead movies. He bears no resemblance to the Evil Dead Ash, I just liked the name. He actually in appearance is almost like Daffy Duck, though he lacks the lisp. I really think you don't see any dark feathered ducks in Disney that often because of WB. He's not supposed to be Daffy, just have the same coloration…and make an offhand joke about "despicable".
I have no plans for any bunnies.
There is another chapter coming up right after this. A reader of mine, moonbird, really found it annoying that ol' Bushroot doesn't have a phd in this, and she really wanted to see him get on. I, personally, didn't think it was that big a deal, so she went and wrote a nice chapter for me. I looked it over, thought it was nice and funny and it won't hurt the direction of the story, so I'm gonna go ahead and post it. Hope you like it.
Next episode: A guest episode. Long ago someone stole Bushroot's opportunity for a doctorate, and is now claiming his work as their own. When the other three get wind of this they are determined to set right what has gone wrong…