Sponge: Welcome back! Last week's chapter was the title of a song from the movie Top Gun, famously performed by Kenny Loggins. Congrats to AnonymousAva and Klara . MS for the correct guess. Here's chapter 15! Warnings include language, violence, peril, angst, and kissing. Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Scooby Doo characters. They belong to Cartoon Network, Warner Brothers, and Hanna Barbera.
Chapter 15: Heroes
The parrot hovered just above their heads, eyes gleaming evilly. The gang stared at him, mouths agape.
"Confused?" he asked. "I'll be happy to explain the sequence of events."
Abruptly, Scooby realized that he'd heard Pericles' voice before. He remembered the spooky restaurant they'd been to in New York City, and the "animatronic" bird that had frightened him. That was why he'd thought the photo of Pericles at Brad and Judy's house had seemed so familiar. Scooby had seen – and heard – him before, at the Jekyll and Hyde Club.
It hadn't really hit Scooby until now just how long Pericles had been watching them, and just how closely he had been following them all this time. The realization filled him with dread.
"It was simple, really," the bird was saying now. "I barely had to do anything at all – Brad and Judy were already suspicious of Ricky and Cassidy, so of course they wouldn't let them travel across the country alone and potentially put you in harms' way. After that, it was simply a matter of finding my way onto their plane, following them to their rental vehicle, and riding along with them here. Once that had happened, Leon was free to snatch the little girl."
"How long have you been here?" Fred was the first of the gang to find his voice.
Pericles fluttered down onto a nearby box and shrugged. "Oh, only about an hour or so. Enough time for the drugs to have taken effect." Here he cast a sidelong glance at the adults on the floor. "That was easy to accomplish as well. They parked their rental vehicle at the medical school, so it was only too simple to find sedatives there. I found a syringe, then caught up with the humans and flew behind them as they made their way here. Once we were inside, I revealed myself. By the time I'd given them each a jab, they were too late to stop me. Then I flew back out and affixed the door with the chain and the padlock to keep you at bay until I could fly back in through the window and find the serum."
The gang stared at him, stricken.
"Don't worry," Pericles said, though his tone told them they had a great deal to worry about. "I haven't found it yet – as you can see, this place is a maze."
It really was. Wildly, as he looked around, Fred was reminded of the government warehouse from the end of the Indiana Jones movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark.
"And don't worry about them," Pericles added, jerking his head over to the group of adults who were still slumped over in the middle of the floor. "They aren't dying. In fact, they should be waking up soon." He turned his evil gaze on Fred. "Which brings me to you…"
Despite himself, Fred felt a cold chill run down his spine. But he was done feeling afraid. He clenched his fists and set his jaw. "What do you want with me?" His voice sounded much braver than he felt.
Pericles clucked his tongue. "You remind me so much of them," he said softly, glancing again at Brad and Judy. "You look just like them. And you have their same determination. Not that it will help you."
"What do you want with me?" Fred asked again through clenched teeth.
"I will tell you what I want with you," Pericles replied, his eyes darkening. "You are skilled with tying knots, yes? I assume you must be, trap-master that you are."
Fred didn't respond – he simply glared at the bird.
"You'll notice," Pericles continued, ignoring Fred's furious gaze. "That I am but a small avian – a tiny, fragile parrot. You'll also notice that there is only one of me, and six of you. Ten, if you count them." Again, he gestured to Brad, Judy, Ricky, and Cassidy. "All this to say, I could be easily overpowered at any moment."
"Good point," Fred snarled. He felt the gentle touch of Daphne's hand on his arm.
"Exactly," Pericles agreed. "Which is why I need you, knot-tyer-extraordinaire, to bind your friends."
Fred furrowed his brow. "You mean, tie them up?"
"Precisely," said Pericles. "And nice and tightly, too. We can't have anyone wiggling out and escaping."
"What makes you think I'd do anything you asked me?" Fred couldn't see how Pericles thought he'd get away with this.
Until the parrot glared at him darkly and said, "Because you won't have a choice otherwise."
With that, Pericles flew over to a rope on the wall that no one had noticed and cut it with one of his sharp talons.
With a whoosh, a length of chain fell from the rafters above, the end of which sported a carabiner that landed right at Daphne's feet. Quicker than anyone else could move, Pericles shot forward and picked it up with his beak. He deftly circled the chain around her waist and fastened it with the carabiner. Then he flew up to a tall shelf and gently nudged a huge, unsteady crate.
To everyone's horror, the crate was attached to the chain by a wheel and axle in the rafters – the same chain which was, at its other end, currently attached to Daphne. And whatever was inside the wooden crate made it much heavier than she was.
With a piercing scream, Daphne was yanked upward by the chain as the counterweight crashed to the ground. When she stopped rising, she found herself hovering precariously about thirty feet above her friends. Fear welled up in her chest, and even though the chain was securely fastened around her waist, she still clutched the part above her like a rappel and hung on for dear life.
"DAPHNE!" everyone shouted, terror-stricken. Nova gasped, Shaggy's eyes widened in fear, and Velma clapped both of her hands to her mouth.
Scooby immediately bolted forward to stand underneath Daphne, just in case the carabiner detached. Not that his cushioning would be very helpful for a fall from that height.
Pericles chuckled. "After watching you for two years, I've picked up a few tricks. I knew I needed leverage, so I took the liberty of assembling a pulley system while I waited here for you." His eyes glinted evilly. "You're not the only one adept at trapping, Fred Jones Junior."
Fred turned on Pericles. "Put her down!" Fred shouted, making to grab for the bird.
But Pericles was too fast, and swiftly flew upwards, out of Fred's reach.
"Oh, I think not," he replied. "Unless you mean for me to drop her…is that what you'd like? I could easily unclasp the chain and detach it from the crate."
"You're a monster," Fred spat, wildly lunging for the parrot again.
"I just know what I want," Pericles said simply. "And I know what you want, Fred Jones Junior. You want the girl that you love safe and out of harms' way." He hovered above the crate that weighed Daphne down, and glanced at Fred. "You do love this girl, do you not?"
Fred glared at Pericles, trembling with fury and fear.
"DO YOU LOVE HER?!" Pericles bellowed in a terrible voice. He extended a claw to unclasp the chain link from the crate.
"Yes!" Fred exclaimed hurriedly. He felt his eyes stinging with unshed tears. "Yes, I love her! I do!"
"How much?" Pericles demanded. He hadn't detached the counterweight, but his talon had not moved either. "More than your own life?"
"More than anything!" The words tumbled out, tripping over each other in their haste to be said, and while they were inexorably true, they still weren't quite right. They didn't accurately describe Fred's love for Daphne. He didn't just love her more than anything else in the world…she was everything to him. His life without her was impossible imagine. And he had already nearly lost her more times than he could count. Pericles couldn't take her from him now. He couldn't.
"Please…" Fred begged desperately, blinking back tears. "Please…"
"Then let's try this again," the parrot said, his voice dripping with malice. "Bind your friends, or Daphne Blake will forever be your late lover."
"Fred, don't do it!" Daphne shrieked from above.
"I'm not losing you!"Fred shouted back, furiously swiping away the few tears that had leaked from his eyes.
The parrot laughed evilly. "Good," he crooned. "Very good. Begin with them." He gestured towards the adults on the ground, who were now slowly beginning to stir. "They'll be waking up soon. You'll find rope in the box beside the door you came through." Pericles glared at Shaggy, Velma, Scooby, and Nova, who were all rooted to the spot. "And if any of you advance a single step towards me…" He gestured again to the chain that held Daphne aloft.
None of them moved, paralyzed with fear.
On trembling legs, Fred trudged forward, finding rope exactly where Pericles had said it would be. He cursed himself as he tied the hands of the four adults behind their backs. He knew better than to give into the whims of this maniac. He knew he shouldn't do a thing that Pericles said. But if he didn't, Pericles would kill Daphne, and it would be all Fred's fault.
He couldn't live with that.
Once the adults had been bound, Pericles came over to inspect the knots. "Good," he said again. Then he gestured with his wing towards Shaggy and Velma. "Now them."
Fred approached Shaggy first, eyes shining apologetically. "I'm sorry, Shag," he murmured.
Shaggy shook his head. He understood full well what Fred was going through and couldn't begrudge him this. Shaggy knew firsthand how it felt to have the person you loved most in the world staring danger in the face.
Of course Fred would give into Pericles' demands. There was no other choice.
"Like I get it," he told him. "I get it."
The rope was scratchy, and burned Shaggy's wrists, but he knew Fred wasn't taking any chances. He had to tie it tight.
Once that was finished, Fred turned to Velma. The look on her face made Shaggy's breath catch. Normally, she was so stoic and calm. But now she trembled visibly from head to toe, eyes wide and sparkling with tears.
Fred's eyes were welling up again. "Velma…I'm sorry," he mumbled, sniffling.
Shaggy's heart twisted. Velma had been tied up, helpless, just like this not even a month ago. It hardly seemed fair that she had to go through it again. Shaggy swallowed, unable to even reach out to comfort her.
Velma inhaled shakily and nodded. As Fred bound her wrists behind her, she closed her eyes and tears spilled over her freckled cheeks, which cracked Shaggy's heart right in two.
Daphne was in tears as well. "Freddie!" she shouted. "Please, you have to stop!"
Pericles flew upwards until he was directly in front of her face. "Be quiet, insolent child," he murmured darkly.
Fury welled up in Daphne. She let go of the chain with one hand and reached out to swat at Pericles. Of course, he dodged.
"What a temper," he said with a malevolent grin. "You're quite the firecracker, aren't you?"
"Go to hell!" Daphne snarled before spitting in Pericles' direction.
He glowered at her. "You shouldn't have done that," he muttered. Without another word he swooped back down to where her friends were. Fred had finished tying Velma's hands, but Pericles didn't inspect the knot. Instead, he flew up to Fred and clutched his ascot in his talons.
"What are you –" Fred began, but he didn't finish his sentence because Pericles had suddenly wrenched the ascot around, squeezing it from behind. Choking Fred.
Gasping for air, he flailed his arms behind him, trying to reach Pericles but without any success.
It took a few seconds for the others to realize what was happening, but as soon as they did, everyone began shouting for Pericles to stop, their voices all rising together in frantic horror. But he didn't stop.
In fact, he squeezed harder.
"FREDDIE NO!" Daphne screamed loudest of all; her voice laced with terror.
The dogs both leapt forwards. "Ret him go!" Scooby barked angrily.
"Now!" Nova demanded.
Pericles finally released Fred, who fell to the ground, rubbing his throat and heaving deep breaths. Shaggy and Velma had been standing, but now dropped to their knees beside him – though with their hands tied behind their backs, there wasn't anything more they could do. Scooby and Nova surrounded Fred and nudged him comfortingly.
Pericles looked up at Daphne. "Do not test me," he called from below, his voice threatening. "It will not end well for you…or for him."
Stranded high above them and unable to do anything at all, Daphne hung her head and sobbed.
"And you two," Pericles said, gazing at the dogs. "It has been a long time that I've dreamt of this moment."
Shaggy flashed his eyes at the parrot. "Like I swear to God if you hurt Scooby Doo –" he began, but Pericles interrupted.
"Worry not," the bird said. "I have no plans to hurt either of them. Yet." He grinned evilly at Fred. "I need them to help you."
"Help me do what?" rasped Fred, still breathless.
"I don't know where the serum is," Pericles told him. "And I don't have time to search through all these crates. So the dogs are going to help you sniff it out."
"You're out of your mind," Nova growled.
"On the contrary. I have never been more in my right mind," Pericles replied. He jerked his head at Velma and Shaggy. "You two will come with us," he said. "So I can keep an eye on you."
Fear clutched their hearts. They couldn't leave Daphne here alone, dangling dangerously thirty feet above. And they knew that once they entered the maze of shelves, they'd lose sight of her.
But if they wanted to make sure she stayed alive, they had no choice.
"Come along, Kinder," Pericles said.
Slowly, Fred got to his feet, adjusted his ascot, and helped Shaggy and Velma up. Feeling defeated, he glanced at Scooby and Nova.
"Let's go," he muttered monotonously.
Daphne watched helplessly from above, trying to muffle her sobs as they entered the maze of shelves. There must be some way for her to get down so she could help them!
A movement below caught her eye, and she peered down. Ricky Owens had shifted his position slightly. He appeared to have sat up slightly straighter.
Daphne squinted at him, wiping her eyes with one hand while she held the chain with the other. Ever so slowly, Ricky was inching away from the cluster of adults on the ground, towards Daphne's counterweight.
The instant that Pericles and the others disappeared into the maze, Ricky sat upright and bolted to the crate. He glanced up and caught Daphne's eye. He looked at her imploringly and mouthed the words, trust me.
Daphne could do nothing but nod and clutch the chain tighter.
Because Ricky's hands were tied behind his back, he struggled a bit with detaching the chain. Once he got it, he used his minimal arm movement to gently lower Daphne back to the ground. Daphne kept a close watch on the labyrinth of shelves that her friends had disappeared into, but she'd totally lost sight of them. Then again, maybe that was a good thing – it meant that Pericles couldn't see her either.
The moment her feet touched the ground, Daphne motioned for Ricky to come closer, so she could untie his wrists.
"How are you awake?" Daphne hissed as she worked the tight knot that Fred had tied.
"Have you seen me?" Ricky retorted, his voice just as quiet. "Pericles would have needed multiple syringes of sedative just to bring me down. As it was, he only brought the one, so I woke up sooner than the others. But I pretended to be asleep so he wouldn't suspect anything."
"I'm glad you did," Daphne told him. "We'd all be goners if it weren't for you." She was still struggling with the rope.
Ricky grunted. "Damn, your boyfriend really knows how to tie a knot."
Daphne smiled despite herself. "I think he used a double constrictor," she replied. The past two years and some change of being Fred Jones' girlfriend had taught her a lot. "It's supposed to be one of the most difficult knots to untie."
"I've got a pocketknife," Ricky told her. "In the left side of my jacket."
Daphne found it easily and in one fluid motion, sliced the rope away, freeing Ricky's hands.
"Thanks," Ricky said, rubbing his wrists. "I'll release the others. You get yourself out of that chain."
Daphne had nearly forgotten the chain was still wrapped around her waist. While she unclasped the carabiner, Ricky returned to his friends and began cutting away their bonds.
Once she was free, Daphne looked up at Ricky. "What do we do now?"
Ricky didn't respond right away – he simply gazed nervously at his friends. "I'm not sure," he replied.
Daphne wasn't sure either. Fred was always the one with the plan. But he was currently being held captive by the most terrifying villain they'd ever faced. There was nothing he could do.
So, it looked like it would be up to Danger-Prone Daphne to save the day.
x.X.x
Unaware of any of this, Pericles and the others were following Nova and Scooby down row after row of endless crates. Well, really, they were only following Nova. She was the one who knew where they were going. Scooby walked nearest her, and continually heard her humming an unfamiliar song under her breath.
"Down to the end, and then right a little bit, and then up halfway…"
When she caught him looking at her quizzically, she shot him a grim smile. "Brad and Judy made up a song about the directions to the serum," she explained in an undertone. "To help them remember where they'd put it, in case they ever came back."
Pericles, who had perched himself on Scooby's back, chuckled darkly. "It's a good thing they taught you the song."
Scooby glowered at the bird.
Fred followed, apparently not hearing any of the animals' conversation. He kept trying to glance over the crates to see if he could catch a glimpse of Daphne, but the shelves obscured his view.
Shaggy and Velma brought up the rear, trudging behind the others. They'd tried to wriggle out of their bonds, but Fred had tied them too tight. It was pointless to keep trying. Velma had gotten a hold of her emotions and kept her face impassive – an expression that Shaggy had come to learn meant that she'd totally given up.
That frightened him worse than anything else.
Suddenly, Nova stopped short in front of a veritable wall of crates.
"It's here," she murmured, sounding reluctant.
Pericles' eyes gleamed evilly. "Excellent," he muttered. "Which one?"
Nova looked at the crates again and counted. "That one," she replied. "On the very bottom, in the middle."
Pericles nodded and turned to glance at Fred. "Well," he said. "Retrieve it."
Fred didn't move.
"Need I remind you," Pericles murmured menacingly. "Of the situation in which your precious girlfriend finds herself? And how simple it would be for me to fly back there, before you could even get out of this maze?"
Fred's face hardened. Pericles knew his biggest weakness – that Fred would do anything to protect Daphne, to keep her safe.
Feeling hopelessly beaten, Fred began taking the crates down, to more easily reach the one that contained the serum.
Shaggy leaned against another stack of crates, feeling tears prick his eyes. It was all over. They'd been defeated by this tiny parrot. Scooby and Nova's minutes were numbered, he knew it. As soon as Pericles had the serum, he'd destroy the dogs. He'd destroy them all.
And Shaggy realized – or perhaps admitted to himself for the first time – that it was all his fault.
Velma glanced at him and noticed his anguish. "Shaggy?" she asked, her voice gentle.
"I'm sorry," he murmured thickly. His feelings of failure and inadequacy had been plaguing him all summer. But they came to a head now as they wrenched open his heart like a crowbar and he sank to the ground. His arms were still bound behind his back, so he couldn't use them to stop the tears as they trickled down his face.
Aghast, Velma sat beside him. "Shaggy?" She couldn't use her hands either obviously, but she stared at him with wide eyes.
"I know I told you that you like, didn't always have to be the brave one," he mumbled, trying in vain to stop crying. "But I like, can't ever be the brave one. I never could. Just like I can never be the smart one, or the leader, or anything other than dead weight."
"What do you mean?" asked Velma.
"I know that I'm a screw-up," he told her, feeling humiliated. "I know that I'm like, a scaredy-cat. I know I don't bring anything to the gang – I never did."
"Shaggy, where is this coming from?" Velma tried to ask, but Shaggy kept going. He was fully aware that Scooby, Fred, Nova, and Pericles could all hear every word out of his mouth, but he didn't care. If this was to be his deathbed confessional, he'd make it a damn good one.
"I'm the one that almost ruined the gang, Velma," he went on. "Like, it wasn't you – it was me. We can trace this whole situation back to my stupid actions. If we'd just told everyone about our relationship when we first started dating, like you said we should, then like, the gang never would have broken up, and we never would have sent our acceptances to different colleges, and we never would have gone on this road-trip. If I hadn't been such a gutless idiot, none of this would have happened. Now we're all going to die, and it's my fault! Not yours, not Fred's – mine. Just like every other horrible thing that happens to us."
Velma tried to speak again, but Shaggy wasn't done.
"I'm weak, and I'm cowardly, and I'm like, totally useless. I don't bring anything at all to the table. I mean, I couldn't even help solve Pericles' stupid code without getting carsick! I'm like, not worth anything to the gang."
"That is not true," Velma finally interrupted, moving so that she was kneeling in front of Shaggy. She gritted her teeth. "Listen to me – you are not useless."
Shaggy didn't look at her.
"Let's go over the facts," Velma continued. "When Madelyn and I were cornered by the Wendigo in the Willow Springs Woods, do you remember what you and Scooby did?"
Shaggy remembered – the pair of them had thrown snowballs at the monster to distract it while Velma and Madelyn escaped. But he didn't answer her.
"Or when Daphne was captured by the Phantom of the Auditorium," Velma went on. "What did you and Scooby do then?"
They'd put on disguises to confuse the Phantom. Shaggy realized what Velma was trying to do and shook his head.
"That's different," he told her, his voice quiet. "I told you, it's like, easier if we're going through something together. It was me and Scoob doing those things. It wasn't me like, acting alone."
Velma blinked. "What about in tenth grade?" she asked. "You defended me from Maureen Fischer after she tried to attack me in gym class. I don't remember Scooby being there for that."
"Well like no, but I only did that because you defended me first. And I mean that wasn't like…life or death."
Velma ignored him. "And weren't you the first of us to volunteer switching off with Fred, even though we all know you hate driving the Mystery Machine?"
"Yeah, but…"
Velma didn't let him finish. "What about when I was trapped in the fine arts library with Leon? Scooby got him out of the way so someone could rescue me. Who was that?"
He didn't reply.
If Velma's hands hadn't been tied behind her back, she would have grabbed Shaggy's face and forced him to look into her eyes. But all she could do was gaze at him fiercely. "Who rescued me, Shaggy?"
Shaggy's voice was small. "I did."
"You did," Velma agreed. "Because you are brave. You are not a coward, Shaggy. You are not useless. And you are not alone. Remember when you said that to me? We've all felt useless, and we've all felt scared, and we've all felt alone – but we are in this together. All of us. You said so yourself." Velma gazed at him seriously and set her jaw. "And you do bring something to the table. Never mind your compassion and humor and tenacity, which are all extremely admirable qualities…it's because of you we even have a gang to begin with. Fred, Daphne, and I hardly even spoke to one another before you moved to Coolsville. You gave us the gang. You gave us each other."
Shaggy blinked at Velma. Her eyes were sparkling with tears.
"I had virtually no one before I had the gang," she continued, her voice slightly shaky. "And then all of a sudden, I had this…family. And you did that for me. You did that for all of us."
Her tears had spilled over, and she tried unsuccessfully to wipe her cheek with her shoulder before she gave up and just went back to gazing at him ferociously. "Do you remember at prom, when you told me that every good thing that happened to you was because of me? I could say the same about you. You changed my life, Shaggy, into something more amazing than I could have ever believed. You're worth more to me than I can explain. You're my best friend, my soul mate." She inhaled a trembling breath. "You're my hero, Shaggy. You always have been."
He wasn't sure if she'd already been leaning towards him, or if he met her where she was. But in seconds, their lips crushed together in a passionate, fiery kiss.
It didn't last long before Velma suddenly shrieked in pain, yanked backwards by her hair. Pericles had grabbed her with his talons, and he wasn't letting go.
"Control your hormones, Kinder," he chided mockingly.
"Leave her alone!" shouted Shaggy, suddenly enraged. But before he could do anything else, Nova launched herself into the air.
"Let go of her!" she exclaimed.
Pericles released Velma and dodged out of Nova's way, causing the dog to hurtle into a small crate that sat by itself. The wood splintered upon impact as Nova landed with a crash.
Everyone shrieked in alarm, but Nova rose unsteadily to her feet and glowered at Pericles.
The parrot ignored her gaze and landed on one of the crates Fred had taken down. "Keep. Going." He sneered dangerously at Fred.
Scooby felt totally drained. It was impossible to beat Pericles. He was too smart, too fast.
He glanced at Nova only to find that she was already shooting him a fierce gaze. Once she'd caught his eye, she glanced down infinitesimally. Scooby followed her line of sight and noticed that the contents of the crate she'd crashed into were spilling out at her feet.
As far as Scooby could tell, it was mostly chemistry equipment – scales, beakers, Bunsen burners, and safety matches for lighting them. He looked at Nova again, confused, and she nudged a book of matches with one of her paws.
Instantly, Scooby understood.
Nova wanted to light the crate on fire.
She wanted to try and destroy the serum.
But how? Scooby had opposable thumbs, but he wasn't sure if he had the dexterity to light a match.
Pericles had gone back to watching Fred move the crates, so Scooby used his tail to slide one of the matchbooks across the concrete floor. Velma, who had sat back up after her attack from Pericles, felt it hit her knee. She and Shaggy both looked down at it, then back up at Scooby.
He gestured towards the crate – the one that Fred was getting closer and closer to uncovering – and then mimed striking a match.
Their eyes lit up with understanding.
Shaggy turned stealthily so his back was to Velma and the matches, then used her knee as leverage to scoop the matchbook into his hand. Because his wrists were bound it was difficult to extract a match, but eventually one came loose.
Nova casually loped over to Fred.
"Get ready to run," she whispered, her voice as quiet as a breath.
Fred glanced at her quizzically. "What?"
As carefully as possible with his limited wrist movement, Shaggy struck the match and handed it off to Scooby like some tiny Olympic torch.
"It's highly flammable," Nova told Fred.
"What is?" he asked.
"What are you two muttering about?" asked Pericles.
At that moment, Scooby hurtled past them, match aloft, and hurled the lit flame towards the crates.
Pericles' eyes widened. "NO!" he shouted.
The last thing Fred heard before the flame caught was Nova's voice, louder than he'd ever heard it before. Screaming at them to run.
Sponge: Thanks for reading! Review if you please, and don't forget to guess where the chapter title comes from!