Author's Notes and Disclaimer: Hello-o-o-o everybody! Here we are; the climax of the story! And after that, it's only two chapters until the end. I apologize for the length, but there was so much I wanted to fit in here, so this kind of turned into one of those "created-while-on-a-roll" chapters. There's suspense, drama, some sad moments, but if you know the film, then you know how things turn out. Just don't spoil it for everyone else, though.

Disclaimer: I do not own the movie "The Secret of NIMH" (owned by MGM/UA Entertainment Co., Aurora Productions, and Don Bluth Productions), the characters of "Loonatics Unleashed" (owned by Warner Bros), or the "Tiny Toon Adventures" character Calamity Coyote (owned by Warner Bros and Amblin). I do own my OC Angel the Swan, who makes a cameo here. There is something else I don't own, though: There are also a few lines that Tech remembers as a lullaby from his youth that are actually from a Navajo blessing called "Walk in Beauty" (I got the idea for this after doing some small research I did on coyotes and roadrunners and their connection to certain Native American cultures for another fanfic that I haven't touched for a while, then reading the fanfiction "The Future is Wild!" by Nerfertanya dragongurl Ahhotep, who actually gave Tech and Rev a bit of a Native-American background; recommend reading it).

Recap: After meeting Nicodemus and learning about the origin of the Rats of NIMH as well as what Mrs. Brisby's deceased husband had done to become so well-known, the widowed mouse and her visitors learn that if the rats are to help move Mrs. Brisby's home to safety before Farmer Fitzgibbons is able to repair his tractor, Dragon has to be drugged, and only mice are able to do the task. Mrs. Brisby, Duck, and Rev volunteer, but while running back to the hole, Rev becomes so frightened that his Super Speed fails and he and Mrs. Brisby are caught. Duck goes back to rescue them, but because he doubts himself, his powers fail as well. It seems that there is no hope until Mrs. Brisby starts taking the initiative and manages to bring Duck and Rev's spirits back up. The three also discover that NIMH is coming; they manage to escape with the help of Calamity, and Duck manages to Quack himself, Rev, Cal, and Mrs. Brisby all at once.

Meanwhile, Ace, Lexi, Tech, and Slam are helping the rats with the move when Jenner cuts the ropes, making the machinery fall apart and hit Nicodemus, killing him in the process. Back at the farmhouse, the others begin making their way to the Brisby home, unaware of what has occurred.

Well, that's that for the recap; now on with the story.


Chapter 12: Courage of the Heart

At the Brisby house, everything was a mess; the block was stuck in the mud, the equipment was broken, and Nicodemus was dead.

Ace, Lexi, Slam and Tech all sat at the back of the group of rats that had gathered near the block, trying to deal with the grief and failure they were feeling.

Lexi cast a glare of hatred at Jenner, who was at the center of the gathering, as he spoke, "Friends, we cannot move the Brisby home."

"We…We just can't leave it here…in the mud," Mr. Ages said.

"The equipment is a shambles," Jenner replied.

"Justin!" came Mrs. Brisby's voice in the distance to Lexi's super sensitive ears.

"Do you guys…hear that?" Lexi asked quietly.

"Hear what?" Ace asked, not hearing anything except Jenner speaking.

"One day, we shall journey to Thorn Valley…" Jenner was saying.

"Tech!" Rev's voice called in the distance.

"That!" Lexi said a bit louder, perking up.

"…just as Nicodemus wanted…" Jenner continued.

"Ac-th-e! Ac-th-e!" came Duck's voice this time.

"Duck?" Ace asked in amazement.

"…but not now," Jenner finished.

"Justin!" Mrs. Brisby's voice was closer now.

'Tech! Ace! Slam! Lexi!' Calamity's voice called in the Loonatics' minds.

"Calamity!" Tech gasped.

"Mrs. Brisby…?" Mr. Ages asked in the same tone of amazement Ace had used.

"Come," Jenner said, turning to go. "Let us return to the rosebush…where we belong."

At that moment, Rev appeared on the scene with his three passengers: Mrs. Brisby and Duck in his arms, and Calamity, still wearing the Stone, on his back. He came to a halt, panting from the effort, leaving the other three free to go to the other Loonatics and Mr. Ages.

"Duck? Guys! You got out!" Ace exclaimed, glad to see his teammates and Mrs. Brisby.

"Oh! Mr. Ages!" Mrs. Brisby gasped, going to the elderly mouse.

"Wasth there any doubt?" Duck asked his leader, putting on a cocky smile.

"We're just glad you're all OK," Lexi said before her eyes found what looked like a bandage on Mrs. Brisby's right arm.

Ace then spotted something white sticking out of the left sleeve of Duck's jacket, rolled it back, and found a bandage with a streak of red on it.

"Is dat…?" Ace started to ask, a bit afraid of the answer.

Rolling the sleeve back down, Duck said quickly, not wanting to answer that, "Uh, let'sth justht call it a confirmation of a theory and call it a night, huh? Anyway, what happened here?" he soon asked. "What'sth the block doin' in the mud?"

Calamity was just assessing the same situation when he sensed angry thoughts. Very angry thoughts. He turned to see Tech coming toward him. He knew what it was about, but he couldn't help quivering a bit. Just as he was about to brace himself for what was likely going to be one of the worst punishments he'd ever gotten, Rev zipped in front of him, arms and legs spread out, like he was serving as a barrier between the coyotes.

Tech was momentarily surprised to see Rev come between him and Calamity, but he shook it off; he had something he wanted to say to a certain coyote pup.

"Rev…" Tech growled in warning.

"No," Rev spoke, his face and stance firm.

"Move…" Tech warned, taking a step forward.

"Tech, wait…" Rev warned, him and Calamity taking a step back.

Mrs. Brisby, Mr. Ages, and the other Loonatics' attention was caught by the confrontation.

"Move," Tech growled.

"No, you wait and listen," Rev argued, glaring at the older coyote. "I know what he did. He knows what he did…"

"He had to if he was going to disobey me," Tech glared back.

"If he hadn't gone back for us we wouldn't be out here right now!" Rev argued. "You don't know the situation we were in!"

"That's no excuse for-" Tech started, his voice rising.

"WELL, AT LEAST HE DECIDED TO COME BACK FOR US!" Rev yelled harshly, tears of anger coming from his eyes. "WHAT DOES THAT SAY ABOUT ALL OF YOU?!"

Duck, Mrs. Brisby, and Mr. Ages stood there in stunned silence. The rats stared at the group behind them. Jenner even turned around and saw them, his eyes widening; this was not good for him.

That question, given in that tone that sounded of betrayal so unlike the young roadrunner, hit Tech, Ace, Lexi and Slam hard. Ace bit his lower lip in guilt; he hadn't wanted to leave Rev, Duck, and Mrs. Brisby back at the farmhouse, either, but he did. He had abandoned his teammates and his hostess. He could've listened to Calamity's suggestion before, but he didn't. He had remembered thinking that Calamity's plan had made sense, but he had ignored it.

Lexi and Slam looked down at the ground, feeling guilty as well. Slam had initially agreed with Calamity to go back for Duck and the others, but had ended up leaving; he felt that he should've said more.

Tech just stood there, blankly, any argument or thought of punishment he had had vanished when Rev had yelled that sentence. He just stood there looking at Rev; the roadrunner stood across from him, glaring. He and Rev had had their share of arguments before, but none of them left him feeling so…broken. Empty. Hurt. For the first time, he really felt like the villain all the roadrunners thought that coyotes were. He had left his friend…his brother…behind, something that Rev would never do to him.

Rev's glaring expression slowly melted away into concern when he saw Tech start to cry, and he suddenly thought that he had crossed the line.

"Oh…Uh…Oh…Tech…" Rev said hesitantly, his tone quieter as he relaxed his stance. "Tech…Tech, I didn't…I mean…For-I didn't mean to say it…I mean…Oh, boy…" Rev struggled to find the right words. He knew Calamity had done wrong to disobey Tech, but at the same time the young coyote had known about the hopeless situation him, Duck, and Mrs. Brisby had put themselves into, and he had gone to get them out of it and ended up helping in the escape. "Tech…don't…I'm…"

'No…No, it's something else,' Calamity spoke up, feeling thoughts of grief in everyone except Jenner, Duck, Rev, himself, and Mrs. Brisby. 'Something's happened.' He stretched out his telepathy to find Nicodemus, but he couldn't reach him. 'Nicodemus. Where's Nicodemus?' Calamity asked, growing worried.

Duck snapped back to reality and asked the same thing.

"Where's Nicodemus? And the children?" Mrs. Brisby asked Mr. Ages.

"The kids are all right, and so's Auntie Shrew," Ace answered slowly. "But…"

Duck, Rev, Calamity, and Mrs. Brisby waited for the last piece of that sentence with apprehension.

"Nicodemus…is…dead," Mr. Ages said sadly.

"W-What?" Duck gasped, stunned.

Calamity widened his eyes in disbelief; Nicodemus couldn't be dead! But the proof was there, for he couldn't reach his mind. No-one can reach a mind when it's dead. Calamity staggered on his feet, the sobs starting.

"Oh…Oh, no…" Mrs. Brisby whispered, saddened by the news as she hugged Mr. Ages to comfort him.

"'Dead'? No…No, he can't be!" Rev gasped, looking from Mr. Ages to Tech and his other teammates.

Their saddened faces offered no hope. Rev began to weep, seeking solace on Tech's shoulder. Too slow.

Duck cried his own tears, but he gradually stopped; there was something important to do.

"Not now…" Duck said quietly, trying to firm his tone.

"What?" Lexi and Ace asked, the latter barely hearing Duck.

"We can grieve, but not now!" Duck said louder. "We've got problemsth! Big problemsth!"

Mrs. Brisby, Rev and Calamity slowly came out of their grief as they remembered.

"Duck's right, you're all in great danger," Mrs. Brisby said urgently to Mr. Ages. "NIMH is coming!"

"What?!" Lexi gasped.

"Come, come, let's return to the rosebush," Jenner said quickly to distract the other rats.

"NIMH's coming!" Mrs. Brisby said louder, hopping up on a pulley.

"NIMH?! Here?!" Ace asked.

"NIMH?!" a rat asked in fear.

"When?" Tech asked.

"In the morning!" Duck answered, joining Mrs. Brisby.

Slam gasped; he had not forgotten what Nicodemus had showed him and his comrades about that terrible place.

"NIMH?" another rat asked nervously.

"You're all gonna die unless you leave the farm tonight!" Rev exclaimed.

"Lies!" Jenner retorted.

"Pleas-th-e! You mustht believe usth!" Duck begged.

'We heard Farmer Fitzgibbons talking with NIMH over the phone ourselves!' Calamity said, speaking in everyone's minds, even Jenner's, finally revealing his telepathic abilities to the rats. 'We're not lying!'

"You've gotta leave! Now!" Rev shouted.

"I know my teammates, and I know Mrs. Brisby, and dey're not liars," Ace added, coming to the quartet's defense. "You'll have to leave before morning!"

The rats began to panic.

"What if it's true?"

"We'll all be killed!"

"Don't panic!"

"Don't listen to them!" Jenner shouted, coming up behind the four on the pulley. "They're hysterical!"

Rev and Duck tried to back away when Jenner climbed up, but ended up falling off and into the mud.

Lexi gasped.

"Mrs. B!" Ace warned.

Calamity placed himself defensively between Mrs. Brisby and Jenner.

"Get out now!" Mrs. Brisby urged the rats.

With a vicious backhand, Jenner sent both Mrs. Brisby and Calamity flying through the mud and into the wall of the cement block.

"Calamity!" Tech cried out.

"Mrs. B!" Duck and Rev exclaimed.

"Ace!" Lexi told Ace, looking at Jenner.

"You get out!" Jenner glared at the mouse and the coyote, shucking his cape and drawing his sword. "I've had enough!"

Ace started to reach for the Guardian Strike Sword as Jenner started forward with his own sword.

"Jenner!" Mr. Ages cried out as he tried to block Jenner's path, but was pushed aside and into Rev who had been coming to help.

Jenner snarled and lunged for Mrs. Brisby and Calamity as they scrambled up the block. Duck went in to stop Jenner and was pushed back as well as Sullivan went to alert Justin.

"Justin! Justin!" Sullivan called to the Captain of the Guard.

The brown rat turned, saw what was happening, and raced over.

Mrs. Brisby and Calamity managed to escape a swing of Jenner's sword as they climbed. Pushed back but determined, Duck followed.

Justin rushed by and climbed up the opposite side of the block to cut Jenner off. Ace saw that Justin only had a stick to defend himself, made up his mind about something, pushed the button for his sword blade, and followed the brown rat.

"Jenner, stop this!" Justin exclaimed to the evil rat as Ace appeared behind the captain and Duck reached the top.

'Jenner…STOP,' Calamity commanded, using his psychic abilities to hold Jenner back.

At that moment, the Stone flashed brilliant red.

"Calamity!" Mrs. Brisby gasped, noticing the glow.

"What the…?" Ace queried, his attention momentarily caught.

"The Stone!" Jenner whispered, transfixed by the jewel. He tried to move and found himself unable to; but that didn't stop him struggling against the hold.

Duck heard the greed in Jenner's voice and scrambled to Mrs. Brisby and Calamity.

"Jenner…" Justin warned the rat.

"Get out of my way!" Jenner growled, pushing Justin back and actually breaking through Calamity's hold.

Calamity clutched his head in pain and his mouth made an "Ow!" movement as he felt feedback from Jenner's evil will shattering his hold.

There was some brief two-to-one swordplay between Justin and Jenner with Ace helping Justin before Ace jumped back to avoid a swing and Jenner's sword connected with Justin's left arm, making some blood spurt out and Justin grimace in pain. Ace blanched a bit at the blood.

"I want that Stone!" Jenner growled, about to lunge at Mrs. Brisby and Calamity again.

"You gotta catch it firstht, buddy!" Duck catcalled before teleporting himself, Mrs. Brisby, and Calamity with the Stone away, catching Jenner off-guard.

"Yeah, Duck!" Ace cheered.

Jenner growled, looking around for his quarry. There was a whistle from the ground and Jenner looked down to see Duck with Mrs. Brisby and Calamity…and the Stone.

"Hey, Jenny boy!" Duck taunted, making Jenner angrier. "Catch usth if you can!"

Jenner jumped off the block towards the annoying mallard, but the three disappeared again and reappeared in a different spot, then another, and another, leading the raging rat on a chase. Duck's hope was to taunt him a bit while Justin recovered, and it was working. A bit too well, he noticed at one point.

"Jenner!" Justin shouted, standing up.

"Justin, waitaminnit!" Ace grabbed the brown rat by the right arm. "Dat stick o' yours won't do any good; take my sword, I trust you!" he offered, meaning it seriously.

After what happened with Deuce when he first met him, Ace would never let anyone else hold the Guardian Strike Sword, but he had grown to trust Justin, and had had a feeling that Nicodemus saw in Justin what Zadavia had seen in him when she chose him to wield the special sword.

"You sure?" Justin asked the male bunny.

"Yes," Ace nodded, and the Guardian Strike Sword seemed to glimmer in agreement.

Justin accepted the sword and jumped off the block, knocking Jenner down before he could grab Duck, giving the mallard time to Quack himself and his passengers to a new location, this time one that was far from the battlefield.

"My sword!" Sullivan called, running with his sword out.

"Give it to Ace!" Justin told Jenner's former colleague, recognizing that Ace had swordsmanship skills and welcoming his help against Jenner.

"Kid! Ace! My sword! Take my sword!" Sullivan shouted, throwing his sword.

Ace caught it. Jenner swung his sword at Sullivan, cutting him in the stomach and sending him sliding through the mud.

Ace paled. Rev felt sick. Slam and Lexi gasped. The female rabbit directed her Super Hearing for Sullivan's pulse. He wasn't dead…yet.

Jenner found himself in another block when he found that he couldn't move his sword; it had a green aura around it. Him and Justin looked to see Tech, his eyes and hands glowing the same color as the aura surrounding Jenner's blade.

The coyote growled; he had wanted to stop Jenner before he hit Sullivan, but he had been a fraction of a second too late.

Jenner struggled against Tech's Magnetism Manipulation, wondering what kind of sorcery these animal friends of the widow Brisby possessed. Then, he realized what was happening, actually ripped off a piece of his tunic and wrapped it around his bloodied sword blade. The cloth being non-magnetic, Tech was cut off and Jenner was free.

"Hey! Jenner!" Ace called. "Come pick on somebody who can fight!" he challenged.

Jenner ran towards Justin and Ace, and the real fight began.

"No, Lexi! Slam!" Tech barked, preventing his teammates from rushing in. "We've gotta locate Duck, Mrs. Brisby, and Calamity before Jenner does! That's all we can do now! Go!" he urged, not liking that he had failed to help, but decided to help in this way.

Lexi, Slam, Rev, and Tech split off as Justin and Ace battled Jenner. Ace analyzed the two rats' fighting styles as he fought: Jenner was aggressive, leaving hardly any time to get a swing in, and his right arm was strong. His anger and adrenaline was making him focus on Justin, but there were moments when he managed to nearly catch Ace. Justin had to fight mostly on the defensive, but he was no slouch with a sword, either. However, Jenner was able to use two hands to swing his blade, which was now sans cloth, while Justin could only use one as his other arm was injured. That was where Ace often stepped in, also being able to use two hands.

The fight took the two rats and rabbit off the cement block and onto a nearby rock. Justin had to escape nearly being slashed by Jenner when the rat managed to get his back against the rock and swung down.

"Y'know, Jenner ol' chum," Ace panted when there was a moment's pause. "I've been gettin' to thinkin' 'bout what happened back dere."

Ace jumped back and parried another swing.

"Dat equipment was good; Tech and the other rats made sure of it. So what happened to make it all fall apart?"

Ace parried again and climbed up the rock for a high-ground advantage.

"Den I remember Lexi overhearin' you talk about an accident…(he parried and stepped back)…and hearin' what sounded like a sword hittin' rope…den it hits me: You cut the anchor ropes and killed Nicodemus to prevent the Plan from goin' through."

"Then that was no accident," Justin realized.

"Yes. I killed him," Jenner growled, climbing up.


On the ground, Lexi, Slam, Tech, and Rev continued their search for Duck and his passengers. Even Mr. Ages with his bandaged leg was helping out. They were having no luck until…

'Tech!'

"Calamity?" Tech asked aloud. 'Calamity?' he then asked, using his psychic link with his surrogate younger brother. 'Where are you?'

'We're by the lee of the stone,' Calamity answered. 'Rev's found us.'

'Well, you guys better come over here; Jenner's too busy with Justin and Ace right now. You'd also better tell the others that-' Duck suddenly appeared next to Tech with Mrs. Brisby, Calamity, and Rev in tow, making the brown-furred coyote jump and yelp in surprise.

"We're already here," Duck declared.

Tech then noticed something about the amount of people Duck had Quacked, compared that to how many he had Quacked at a time before…and it equaled surprise.

"Yeah, yeah, big sthurpristhe," Duck dismissed. "What'sth happening?"

"Duck! Tech!" Lexi called, coming over with Slam and Mr. Ages, the latter being carried by Slam and looking rather stunned.

"Mr. Ages, are you all right?" Mrs. Brisby asked the elderly mouse.

All she got for a response was amazed and perplexed mumbles and sputters.

A loud growl from the site of the sword-fight turned everyone's attention to the action.


Back at the fight, there being no room, Ace jumped down from the top of the rock while Justin and Jenner clashed swords. Eventually, Justin was pushed into the mud. Ace stepped near him, sword ready.

"And now you want to sacrifice your own life and the lives of the Rats of NIMH because you can't bear to leave a life of stealing behind!" Ace shouted accusingly.

"He wanted to destroy everything!" Jenner exclaimed, swinging his sword. "I've learned this much: Take what you can,…when you can!" he growled, coming down to Justin and Ace.

"Then you've learned nothing!" Justin grunted.

Jenner raised his sword, intent on killing the two, but was stopped by a karate jump-kick from Ace, sending him backwards.

"Ace! The sword!" Justin called out suddenly, tossing Ace the Guardian Strike Sword back.

Confused, Ace tossed Justin the other sword; just in time to duck to avoid an attack from Jenner. Justin parried the next one, then stabbed Jenner in the stomach. The evil rat cried out in pain. Ace cringed, shutting his eyes momentarily.

The crowd looked on, seeing Jenner wounded and Justin and Ace victorious.

Sullivan, wounded but still barely alive, looked up from the ground.

Jenner backed away, looking at his own blood on his paw and dropping his sword.

Ace, his sword still out, slowly backed away from the scene, feeling nauseous. Lexi, Calamity, and the rest of his teammates came over to him.

"Friends, tonight we journey to Thorn Valley," Justin told the rats, throwing the sword he had used to stab Jenner away. "We will leave no tracks. No evidence that the Rats of NIMH ever existed. Come."

Unnoticed by Justin, Jenner had picked up his sword again and climbed to the top of a rock that was near where Justin was standing. Snarling, he was determined to take Justin down and ensure that the Plan would truly die. Sullivan, seeing this, started withdrawing a dagger.

Mrs. Brisby also saw Jenner and gasped in warning. Justin turned and saw the wounded, snarling Jenner above him. The Loonatics also saw the rat…and suddenly, a thought occurred to them, one that they had never thought before, one that they promised they would never act on. Ace, Lexi and Duck were just a hair's breath away from activating their powers and using them on Jenner, but they held themselves back.

Instead, it was Sullivan, using his last bit of strength, who threw his dagger into Jenner's back. Jenner's face widened in pain and he fell from the top of the rock, dead.

The Loonatics and Calamity looked away from the sight. Sullivan managed to stay alive long enough to see that he was successful, and breathed his last.


Justin, after a moment of silence and a roll of thunder passed, happened to glance over at the six anthros and Toon from another world, and went over to them.

"Hey guys, are you…?" Justin cut himself off when he noticed the group looking very uneasy. "Well, I was gonna ask if you were OK, but I think I got my answer," he then remarked quietly.

"Justin…why…why'd you give me my sword back?" Ace asked.

Justin smiled a little and replied, "Well, I figured that sword was pretty special to you to say that you trusted me with it. I, uh…I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I got it dirty."

"Yeah…" Ace murmured to himself, looking at the blade of the Guardian Strike Sword and seeing his reflection in it.

But, at the moment, the grey-furred, blue-eyed bunny he saw felt more like a stranger than himself. A stranger that had appeared the minute the thought of using his Laser Vision on Jenner came to him. It was as bad as if he had used his own sword to stab Jenner, if not worse. He wondered what Zadavia would say if she saw this.

Ace sighed in disgust at himself and pressed the button on the handle that sheathed the blade.

"I came so close, this close," Ace stressed, bringing his pointer finger and thumb close together with a slight space between them to illustrate, "to using my powers to…to…" he hesitated, not wanting to say it aloud, but he pushed himself to say it: "To kill someone."

"It wasn't just you," Lexi spoke up. "I almost loosed a Brain Blast on him," she confessed, letting her own sin be known.

"You guysth aren't the only onesth who can fire a long-range attack, you know," Duck said bitterly, clenching his hands into fists.

Slam whined in confession; he could've whirled over there and used his strength to crush Jenner.

Even the coyotes and the roadrunner hadn't been spared; Tech could've used his Magnetic Manipulation or Calamity his telekinesis to pick up a stray sword and run Jenner through, or Rev could've sped to Jenner and pushed him over.

Any one of them could've done it if Sullivan hadn't thrown his dagger; but they didn't, because their morals told them that it was wrong to kill.

"You guys have never…?" Justin asked gently, seeing this.

"The six of us have never had to," Tech told the brown rat. "And Cal…he's just a kid."

Justin nodded; Calamity he could understand. However…

"But…what will happen…when you finally face the Darkness back in your world? What will you six do then?" Justin asked.

There was no answer, just looks that read guilt and unsureness.

Seeing that he wasn't going to get an answer, Justin quietly cleared his throat, and went back to the other rats that had gathered around Jenner's corpse, saying, "I'll…I'll just let you be."

As much as Ace and the other Loonatics hated to admit it, Justin was right in asking that question. If they didn't do their part to fight against the Darkness, then they would fail in their duty as protectors. But they never wanted to hurt anyone; that had been the main thing they had established right from the very start when the received their powers. In the beginning, they hardly knew how to handle them, and some people nearly got killed, so, when they finally got together, they worked on refining their control over their powers as much as possible; and it had worked. Until they were brought back in time. Ever since then, their focus and control over their abilities had never been the same. They had to be very vigilant now, otherwise they would hurt someone, or each other. Or their own selves, like what almost happened to Rev back at the farmhouse.

Ace looked at his team, seeing the internal conflict they had put themselves into. The other five looked to him, their eyes asking if there was an answer to this. All Ace could offer was a tiny, hopeful smile and a look that said that they would deal with it when the time came. He then gestured his head towards the cement block, where Mrs. Brisby was headed, telling them to follow her.


"Hello, is anybody up there?" Martin's voice called out from the block. "Slam? Duck? Tech?"

"Martin?" Mrs. Brisby asked as she, the Loonatics, and Calamity ran to the side of the Brisby home.

"Mom!" Martin called.

"Martin? That you? You OK?" Duck asked.

"We're OK!" Martin replied from inside the block.

"Cynthia?!" Rev called.

"Revvy? Revvy?! Mommy?!" cried little Cynthia's voice.

"We're here, sweetheart!" Mrs. Brisby called to her little one.

"Are you OK, Cynthie?" Rev asked, his voice breaking a bit.

"I'm scared! It's dark in here!" Cynthia whimpered.

"Brisby! Brisby, is that you out there?!" called Auntie Shrew this time.

"Auntie Shrew!" Mrs. Brisby gasped. "Yes, it's me!"

"What is going on out there, child?! I heard arguing and shouting and then things clanging together…" Auntie Shrew ranted before repeating her last question.

"Mother, Mr. Ace, are we almost moved?" Teresa's voice called.

"Soon, now…" Mrs. Brisby replied hesitantly.

"Why am I finding that hard to believe?" Auntie Shrew's voice muttered just loud enough for the group outside to hear.

Ace and Duck both bit back rather harsh responses to that as they and the other six leaned against the block, the feeling of failure blanketing them. Mrs. Brisby covered her face with her paws in despair.

Duck knelt down in the mud, feeling unable to stand up. His eye suddenly caught a muddy bubble forming at the bottom of the block and popping. His heart rate picked up and he felt his stomach twist; that did not look good. He stuck his hands in the mud and tried to put them as far under as he could as more bubbles started forming and popping.

Lexi gasped, hearing the bubbling and looking around, panic rising inside her.

"What's…?" Ace started to ask, also beginning to notice.

"It'sth sthinking…" Duck said, his eyes wide in terror.

"What?" Ace asked again.

The bubbling grew more frequent, and soon, to everyone's distress, they saw the block start to slowly sink into the mud.

"It's sinking…" Tech and Rev realized, their terror visible.

"Justin! The block! It's sinking!" Ace and Mrs. Brisby yelled.

That got everyone's attention, including Auntie Shrew's, who let out a scream from inside the block.

"What?" Justin asked until he saw the block sinking and jumped into action. "Come on!"

The other rats rushed in to help as Duck backed off.

"There must be a…There must be a cave-in…below!" Mr. Ages panted, also coming to help despite his broken leg.

Slam tried to use his Super Strength to lift the block. Calamity began using his telekinesis to do the same thing. After Tech shouted a warning, he started using his Magnetic Manipulation on the ring where the rope was tied to, trying to also lift the block by it. Rev, in desperation, tried lifting the block with his own bare hands as well, but it was not working. Ace and Lexi jumped to the top of the block where Mrs. Brisby and Justin were to help tie off the ropes.

"Here, tie these lines together. I'll get a line around the stone," Justin suggested to Mrs. Brisby and the two bunnies, tossing a line towards a rat who was at the top of the stone. "Brutus, quick, get some rope. Tie off those block-lines! Hurry up! Come on! Move it!" he ordered.

"Duck, now would be a good time to use that Aqua Dense of yours!" Ace shouted.

"But it'sth mud!" Duck shouted back.

"Mud is part-dirt, part-water!" Lexi hollered. "JUST DO IT!"

"OK! OK! C'mon, baby, work for me, pleasthe," Duck begged to himself as he stuck his hands in the mud. He then tapped into his powers, his eyes glowing orange, and shouted, "Aqua Densthe!"

There was an orange glow where Duck's hands were, and there was some more bubbling. The Brisby house lifted a bit, but then began to sink again. Duck halted his attempt then tried again.


"Oh my gracious! Oh my Heavens!" Auntie Shrew panicked as the Brisby house began to fill with mud. "Brisby!"

"Mother! Mother!" Teresa shouted.

"What's all that black stuff?" Cynthia asked in a whimper.

"Come on, Teresa, get up on the table!" Martin told his big sister, then groaned to his younger sister who had grabbed onto his leg, "Cynthia!"

"Oh my word!" Auntie Shrew gasped, splashing about in her panic.

"What about Timmy?" Teresa frowned.

"TIMOTHY!" Auntie Shrew shrieked, quickly wading towards Timmy's room, leaving Teresa, Martin, and Cynthia alone.

"Auntie!" Teresa gasped.

"REVVY!" Cynthia screamed.

"Get us out of here!" Martin shouted.

"Mother!" Teresa cried out.


Outside, Duck was still trying to use his Aqua Dense to lift the Brisby house, while Slam, Calamity, and Tech were also using their respective abilities. Rev was still trying to lift the block as well, the children's screams from inside fueling his anxiety. On top of the block, one of the makeshift ropes snapped; Ace alerted Justin of the situation, who took this time to head back to the bank to get more rope.

Duck was about to try his Aqua Dense again when he realized something: When he had put his hands into the mud near the cement block earlier, he had felt the mud start to shift. Then Mr. Ages suggested that there was a cave-in occurring below ground. And each time his Aqua Dense lifted the block, it went down again. What if…?

Oh no. Oh, please, no.

"ACE!" Duck shouted at the top of his lungs, his hands covered in mud. "It'sth making it worsthe! My Aqua Densthe isth making the block sthink fasthter! Get outta there before you get dragged down!"

Ace looked around and saw that Duck was right; Slam, Tech, and Rev were sinking down and Calamity was almost swallowed up by the mud.

"LEX! TECH! YOU'RE ALL SINKING! GET OUTTA HERE! MOVE, MOVE!" Ace ordered his team, taking Lexi's hand and jumping off the block himself.

Slam quickly noticed his position, and, despite his judgment, fought against the downward pull of the mud to obey his leader's command.

'I…I can't…hold…it…' Calamity struggled, not noticing he was up to his neck in mud.

Duck stopped short in his running by, noticing Tech, Calamity, and Rev hadn't obeyed the order yet.

"COYOTESTH! REV! DON'T BE HEROESTH! GET OUT!" Duck screamed.

"Justin!" Mrs. Brisby called from the top of the block.

The brown rat tossed Mrs. Brisby a rope and she desperately tried to tie it to the ring holding the string together, which was still being pulled up by Tech's Magnetism Manipulation.

"JUSTIN!" Mrs. Brisby cried out again, more desperately.

"TECH! CAL!" Duck screamed, his voice almost breaking.

The young coyote's concentration finally broke, he became aware of his surroundings, and he started to splash about in panic.

'TECH! HELP ME!' Calamity screamed, telepathically, and his mouth moving to form the words.

When Tech turned his head and saw Calamity, his heart gave a jolt in his chest. He broke off his hold and rushed to the younger coyote, but he was so deep in the mud that his progress was impeded. Duck started to move in to help Rev.

"Rev! Move it!" Duck urged the roadrunner.

"NO! NO! I WON'T LEAVE THEM!" Rev screamed.

"You're gonna drown! Come on!" Duck argued, trying to pull Rev away.

Rev gave Duck a swift, adrenaline-fueled uppercut that actually sent the duck sliding backwards before returning to futilely trying to lift the block.

"I won't leave them! I won't leave them like I left Rip! I WON'T!" Rev screeched, the mud now going past his chest. "CYNTHIA!"


Meanwhile, the inside of the block was almost filled with mud. The three children were stuck on the table, Martin holding a rope on the ceiling, Teresa holding his leg, Cynthia holding on to her. None of them knew what was happening to Auntie Shrew or Timothy.

"Hang on! Don't let go!" Martin instructed his sisters.

"CYNTHIA!" came Rev's desperate cries from outside.

"Revvy! Revvy!" Cynthia cried out before losing her grip on Teresa and sliding off the table into the mud.

"Grab onto my foot!" Teresa told her.

"I can't breathe!" Cynthia whined, coughing.

The other kids coughed as Cynthia finally managed to grab her big sister's foot.


"CALAMITY!" Tech shouted desperately, trying to reach him.

Calamity's telepathic voice was cut off due to his panic, and all he could do was voicelessly scream as he was dragged under.

"CALAMITY! NO-!" Tech cried out before sinking completely himself.

Ace and Lexi screamed at the sight of the coyotes sinking completely into the mud. Duck looked around desperately, his chin hurt, but it didn't register; the coyotes were gone, the block was almost completely sunk, and Rev and Mrs. Brisby were next.

And the rope holding everything up was about to snap.

Rev continued with his lifting, until he heard a familiar voice in his mind: 'Rev! Rev! Help! Help us!'

The roadrunner was brought out of his anxiety-fueled desperation just long enough to register the voice as Calamity's before the rope snapped; the block went completely into the mud, taking Rev and Mrs. Brisby with it.

"NO!" Duck screamed.

Duck ran in and took about five deep breaths before holding them and diving into the muck.

"DUCK!" Ace yelled.

Justin saw this and, tying a rope around his waist, went in to help.

Ace called for a rope; he, Lexi, and Slam tied it around themselves and followed Justin and some other rats in.

The mud began to churn and bubble, then, suddenly, Mrs. Brisby, Duck, Rev, Tech, and Calamity all seemed to jump up from the mud, alive and gasping for air. The amulet fell off Calamity's neck and landed in the mud; no-one noticed this, however. They were too busy pulling the mouse, the two coyotes, the roadrunner, and the duck away, and it was not easy as they were struggling desperately.

"LET…ME…GO!" Duck shouted as he struggled in Slam's arms.

"No! You'll drown!" Ace argued as he tried to hold Rev, holding him off the ground so that he wouldn't run.

Mrs. Brisby gasped as she saw her home, with her children still inside, sink. She struggled to escape Justin.

"PLEASE! PLEASE!" Rev begged.

Tech growled and grunted as he fought to get out of Lexi's grip.

Calamity, who was being held by another rat, tried to squirm out, not even thinking about using his telekinesis.

"Duck, we can't-" Ace started.

"NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!" Duck screamed, each "no" louder and desperate than the last. "I PROMISTHED!" he cried.

Everyone stopped struggling for a moment and looked at Duck, who was crying.

"I promisthed," Duck wept. "Don't you understhtand? Mrs. Bristhby isth like the mother I never had! I had never consthidered anyone my family before, not even my own team!"

"Duck…" Ace gasped, surprised at the duck's confession.

"But then we met Mrs. B and her family, and I finally felt like I had found my family, and she even helped me realiz-th-e that I had one all along!" Duck continued. "When we were in that cage, I promisthed her that I would never let her down again, AND I'M NOT GOING TO!"

'Duck's right!' Calamity said, a glare of determination on his face. 'Mrs. Brisby's done so much for us, now it's our turn!'

"When I lost my little brother, I blamed myself because I wasn't there," Tech added, crying. "I wasn't there to save him! When I took Calamity under my care, I promised that I would keep him safe from harm like I would have done for Shilah! That promise applies to all my friends, the ones who I consider brothers to me, and the people I meet!"

"When the Darkness took Rip, took all our families, I blamed myself because I wasn't there to protect him!" Rev put in. "But we're here now! And Mrs. Brisby and her children need us! They need protectors! They need heroes!"

Slam growled and said in his language: "They're right! We may have failed to save our families, but at least we can save Mrs. Brisby's! I'm not gonna stand by and let them perish!"

"Me neither, Slam!" Lexi agreed. "Things may look hopeless now, but what happens when they do?"

"We come in!" Ace answered, a firm look of defiance of the situation on his face. "We promised dat we would defend innocent lives! Dat we would never give up, even at the cost of our own lives! We're the Loonatics!" Ace declared proudly. "We're gonna save Timmy, we're gonna save the Auntie Shrew and the kids, we're gonna save Mrs. Brisby's home…"

"AND NOTHING IS GOING TO STOP US!" Ace, Lexi, Duck, Slam, Tech, Calamity, and Rev all shouted in unison.

WHOOSH! There was a sudden, bright flash of white light that blinded everyone for a moment before dying down.

"What…was that?" Lexi asked, not knowing where the light came from, but feeling slightly strange.

"Guysth…" Duck warned, looking out at the spot where the cement block had sunk.

At that moment, the amulet with the Stone flew up out of the mud, glowing brilliantly, and floated over to Mrs. Brisby, Calamity, and the Loonatics. All eight of them shielded their eyes from the blinding glow as Justin and Mr. Ages genuflected respectfully in its presence.

"Courage of the heart is very rare…" came Nicodemus' voice.

They all looked at the amulet and thought they could see Nicodemus' face in the jewel as he finished the advice he had given them earlier when he gave Mrs. Brisby the necklace: "The Stone has a power when it's there."

"The Stone!" Mrs. Brisby gasped softly.

Mrs. Brisby hesitantly reached up and touched it, only to yelp in pain and let it go as it had burned her hands. Duck tried to grab it to save it, but ended up getting his hands burned, too and let it go.

The burning amulet landed nearby on a stump, making the surface actually bubble as it burned.

Duck winced and flexed his fingers. He looked to see that the feathers on his palms had been burned off, leaving scorched skin.

The group of eight stepped toward the now-fiery Stone, and looked at each other to ask how they were going to handle this. Calamity looked into Mrs. Brisby's mind and saw that she had decided to hold the Stone. Calamity then stood in front of her, putting his hands on her arms, telling her and her alone that he would help her conduct the amulet's power.

'Are you sure?' Mrs. Brisby asked Calamity.

Calamity swallowed a lump in his throat as his eyes burned with tears; doing this could very well drain him past the point of recovery. But he knew that the others would be there to help, and that it had to be done. He nodded to her.

Mrs. Brisby looked behind her to the others, and their unsureness melted into firm, determined expressions. They would do this like they always did: Together.

With Calamity holding her arms, Duck and Rev holding her shoulders, and Tech at her back, Mrs. Brisby picked up the Stone once more. The five of them grimaced against the burning intensity and power that the Stone was exerting, but they held firm. Ace and Lexi soon each put one hand on Tech and Rev's shoulders while holding each other's hands with their other one. Slam was last, putting his big hands on the bunnies' shoulders.

A deep power soon began to fill them, and when the Loonatics each opened their eyes-Slam first, then Ace, Lexi, Tech, Rev, and Duck-their eyes, and their heart areas, glowed the respective colors of their powers, but the glow was much brighter than ever. Calamity's eyes also glowed a bright bluish-silver. But Mrs. Brisby's golden glow, which was around her whole body, almost outshined them all.

As if under the influence of the combined powers of the ones given to the Loonatics by the meteor, Calamity's powers of the mind, and the courage of the heart in all of them, as well as the amulet's own power, the rope holding the Brisby house floated toward them. Mrs. Brisby touched it and the power ran down it to the block.

There was a moment where it seemed that it didn't work…but then the mud began to churn and bubble, and the cement block, glowing and sparking, rose up out of the mud and the empowered eight floated it over to the spot in the lee of the stone that the rats had dug out earlier; the mud inside was also gone, and the Brisby children and Auntie Shrew were all unharmed.

Once the task was done, the glows diminished. One by one, drained by the effort, the group began to stagger and fall to the ground.

Calamity hit the ground first, followed by Duck. Mrs. Brisby staggered a bit before collapsing. Tech tried to say something, but he passed out.

"Oooh…don't feel so good…" Rev whimpered woozily before he passed out as well.

Ace tried to hold out a bit longer, but he was so tired. The last thing he saw was Lexi on the ground, and he barely managed to say her name before he, too, succumbed.


"Ace… Ace…!"

"Ma…?"

"Ace…! Wake up, Ace!"

Ace slowly opened his eyes. When his vision came back into focus, he saw Justin and a teary-eyed Lexi over him. He groaned as he sat up.

"Hey, how…how long was I out?" Ace asked hoarsely.

"Just a few seconds," Justin answered, a smile of relief on his face.

Ace sighed a little, then got a confused look on his face as he felt something a bit off.

"What's wrong?" Justin asked, concerned.

"Is it just me or can I actually feel every strand of fur on my body right now?" Ace remarked, puzzled.

Lexi, Slam, Justin, Mr. Ages, and the other rats broke out into laughter.

"No, I'm serious; I think I can feel everything else, too," Ace then said, still confused.

Everyone who was awake and present laughed harder.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

Ace then yelped a bit as Lexi leaned toward him and hugged him tight.

"'Ey, Lex, what gives?" Ace asked his friend gently.

"So glad you're back," was all Ace could hear through Lexi's sobs of relief.

Ace then returned the hug and began to soothe her.

"Aw!" Slam exclaimed.

"Good to see you up and about, Slam," Ace chuckled. He then looked around at the others, not seeing Calamity or his other teammates. Or Mrs. Brisby. "Hey, where's everybody else? Duck? Cal? Mrs. B?"

"I'm afraid they're still out cold," Justin told Ace. "We're trying to wake them up."

There was a whimper and shifting from Ace's left.

"Rev," Lexi identified.

"I'll take care of him," Mr. Ages reassured, hobbling past Ace.

Ace then looked to his right and saw Mrs. Brisby, with the amulet once again around her neck, and Duck, still passed out. He crawled over as Justin came to Mrs. Brisby and tried to gently wake her up by saying her name.

"Ya might wanna try 'Elizabeth'," Ace suggested to Justin with a knowing smile. "It is her real first name."

Justin smiled back and began to follow Ace's suggestion. Meanwhile, Ace finally made it over to Duck.

"What's up?" he asked Lexi, who was looking extremely concerned.

"I'm barely hearing his heartbeat," Lexi answered in a hushed tone.

Ace began to panic. Was Duck…?

"Duck," Ace began to call softly. "Duck!"

"Duck," Lexi called quietly.

"Duck," Slam added.

"Duck!"

"Duck!"

"Duck!"


"Duck!"

Duck groaned and moved slightly. He felt a bit stiff. And light. What happened?

"Duck!"

There was that voice again; female, likely a young child. But it didn't sound like Teresa or Cynthia. Who was that little girl calling his name?

"Duck! Danny, wake up!"

That made Duck sit up fast; no child used his first name except Calamity on occasion, but that wasn't the grey coyote he had heard. He blinked his eyes and saw the source of the voice standing in front of him: a young, female white swan, probably no older than four or six years old. She had golden hair, ocean-blue eyes, and she was wearing a light-blue dress with a skirt that came down to her knees.

The little swan girl smiled shyly at him. "Hi, Danny," she said.

"Do I…know…?" Duck trailed as he racked his brain for the right memory. Then it hit him. "Angel?!" he gasped.

She nodded vigorously, smiling widely.

Tears sprang to Daniel Duck's eyes as he got on his knees and hugged his old friend.

"But…wai-wait a…wait a minute," Duck stammered as he suddenly remembered something else. "You…You're…Then, what…?"

Duck looked around, taking in his surroundings. It was morning; they were in a grassy plain populated with white lilies. Duck did a mental re-check; last time his eyes were open, it was night and the ground was muddy. How did he get here? And, more importantly, where was here?

"Hey…where am I? What'sth going on here?" Duck asked suspiciously.

Angel looked at him sheepishly and slowly replied, "Um…you may have taken…a slight trip to…" She then cast a quick glance upward.

Duck repeated her movement about three times before it sank in.

"Wait, am I…? Isth thisth…? O-O-O-O-oh, wow!" Duck groaned, looking freaked out. "I'm dead!"

"Uh, no," Angel answered calmly. "But your body has been exhausted enough for a momentary visit to occur."

"'Momentary'?" Duck repeated to himself.

The meaning of the word hit him like an anvil. This was going to be his only chance to talk to Angel about everything. To tell her something he never got a chance to when she was alive because they had both been too young.

"Oh… Oh, Angel, I…I can't possthibly…I justht…" Duck stammered, his voice growing thick with emotion.

"No, Danny," Angel shook her head sadly. "It's not your time yet; you'll have to go back soon. Of course…it's going to take one of your friends a bit longer to return…" she added. "Poor thing…so weakened…"

"Huh? What? Who…Who do you…? Hey, what happened to the othersth?!" Duck exclaimed, starting to panic again.

"They'll be fine, Danny. They'll be fine," Angel said soothingly. She then ran a hand over his face, ruffling the three tufts of feathers sticking out from his head. "You look good," she said, smiling.

"You look pretty good yoursthelf for a twenty-sthomething four-to-sthix-year old," Duck remarked.

"But I'm not happy with your behavior, mister! Nope, nope, nope!" Angel then said in a scolding tone, backing up and putting her hands on her hips.

Duck gulped, feeling caught. Normally, something like this would be a bit amusing; a twenty-something duck getting chewed out by an eternal child, but it wasn't for Duck.

"You…You know…about…?" Duck stammered.

"This is Heaven; we can see everything from up here!" Angel told him, spreading her arms out. "I don't like how you've been acting…or what Pinkster's been up to," she added sadly. "When you got upset with him after your visit to him in prison, I felt so sorry for you; I wanted to come right down there and comfort you…but, well, somebody else took care of it. Although, I'm pretty surprised you two didn't end up killing each other," she said, amazed.

"Actually, Zthuke's got musthcles like a brick wall, stho…" Duck trailed nervously, remembering the spar he had had with the saurian after he and Ace came back from visiting Pinkster.

Angel giggled a bit before saying, "I have also been seeing how you've been acting around Mrs. Brisby, and I have to say, except for one part, I'm happy; yep, yep, yep! You're beginning to become the duck I always believed you were."

"With or without the ego?" Duck asked.

Angel thought on that a bit. "OK, maybe a drop of the ego; but not that giant one that you've been growing all these years!" she giggled.

Duck laughed along with her until suddenly, everything seemed to get a bit brighter and more transparent.

"Hey-hey! What'sth goin' on now?" Duck asked.

Angel looked at her friend sadly. "Time to go back, Danny," she stated.

Duck shook his head; it couldn't be, not yet! He and Angel embraced each other for what would be the final time.

"I don't wanna go…" Duck whimpered. "There'sth stho much I wanna tell ya, about my adventuresth, about my friendsth, everything! Pleasthe, don't go away…"

"It's not up to me, Danny; nope, nope, nope," Angel stated honestly.

Danny felt Angel slowly starting to vanish, becoming non-corporeal.

"Oh, I almost forgot: There's some folks up here that say 'hi' and 'miss you'. Could you tell Tech and Zooky for them?" she asked, her voice starting to echo.

"Sure, sure," Duck agreed. "Uh, Angel? There'sth…sthomething I…"

Duck never finished because he felt a light press on his lips. He smiled; Angel had kissed him.

"I know," her voice echoed.

Duck began to feel like he was starting to fall.

"Now, you behave yourself, mister…Yep, yep, yep!" Angel's voice giggled as he continued to fall.

Falling… Falling… Everything went black.


Back in the world of the living, tears fell from Duck's closed eyes and he began to mumble.

"I don't wanna go…" he whimpered. "I don't wanna go… Don't go…"

"Duck?" Ace asked.

"Angel… Pleasthe…" Duck whimpered.

Ace, Slam, and Lexi looked at each other, not knowing who this "Angel" was.

"Duck, wake up," Lexi told the mallard, gently shaking him.

Duck gasped and opened his eyes. He moved his eyes around and took in familiar faces: Lexi, Slam, and Ace. He then turned his head to see Justin with Mrs. Brisby. She was awake, and it looked like she had had an experience of her own.

"Hey," Mrs. Brisby said softly.

"Hello," Duck said back. "You meet sthomeone while you were gone?"

Mrs. Brisby nodded, tears falling. "You?" she asked.

"Mm-hm," Duck responded.

"Uh, you guys wanna let us in on that?" Ace asked.

Lexi hit him lightly on the shoulder. "Don't be rude!" she whispered.

"Hey, uh, how'sth…everyone elsthe? Did we do it?" Duck then asked.

Before anyone could respond, there was the sounds of running footsteps approaching, along with a cry of "Brisby!"

"You're kiddin'!" Ace gasped.

"No way!" Duck gaped.

Sure enough, there was Martin, Teresa, Cynthia, and Auntie Shrew running onto the scene.

"Mother!" Teresa called.

"Brisby!" Auntie Shrew cried out.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Cynthia shouted happily.

"Cynthia! Teresa! Oh! Oh, are you all right?!" Mrs. Brisby gasped happily as her children ran to her and embraced her.

"It was so scary!" Cynthia started.

"The place was filling with black stuff and we couldn't breathe!" Teresa added.

"Then, suddenly, everything started to glow and the mud disappeared and we were floating!" Martin finished.

"Now, WILL SOMEBODY PLEASE TELL ME WHAT'S GOING ON HERE AND WHAT ARE ALL THESE RATS DOING HERE?!" Auntie Shrew shouted, still looking frightened.

The shrew's loud voice made many of the rats laugh and cover their ears.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down, ma'am," Justin chuckled, trying to settle the shrew. "We were just moving the house."

"Yeah, like I told ya, Auntie: Just a minor difficulty and we fixed it," Ace told the shrew. "Now yer're all moved."

"I knew you and your friends could do it, Mr. Ace!" Teresa beamed.

Ace blushed a bit. "Just call me Ace, 'K?" he asked.

"Slam, Duck, you guys did great!" Martin praised the two Loonatics.

"Well, it wasth actually a team effort, kid, but thanksth," Duck told him.

"How's Timmy?" Lexi asked Auntie Shrew.

"He's fine," Auntie Shrew answered.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Mrs. Brisby sighed in relief.

"I think it was somethin' that Tech did," Ace said.

A jolt passed through Duck when he remembered something Angel said, something about someone taking longer to come back.

"Duck, are you OK?" Mrs. Brisby asked, concerned.

"Revvy?" Cynthia's voice asked in concern. She then gasped. "Mommy!" she cried out.

Everyone turned to Cynthia to see what was the matter. Teresa, Lexi, Mrs. Brisby, and Auntie Shrew gasped. Martin and Ace just stood there in disbelief. Duck sank to his knees.

"Oh no…Not him… Anyone but him!" Duck gasped.


Rev had woken up before Duck did, forced to leave behind of a dream of him and his family back together, which had caused him to wake up with a whimper. As he gradually regained his senses, he found old Mr. Ages standing near him.

After a short conversation and thanking Ages, Rev was about to check on Tech and found him on his knees and bent over, ears down, holding a small form to his person, rocking back and forth. A closer inspection nearly made Rev's heart stop; Tech was crying and cradling a very, very still Calamity.

Rev was rendered speechless; all he could do was cover his beak and shake his head in disbelief. He didn't even notice Cynthia coming over until he heard her voice.

"Revvy?" Cynthia asked in concern.

He looked at her then, his emerald eyes glistening with tears.

Cynthia's gaze then fell on the two coyotes and she gasped, scared and confused at what was happening.

"Mommy!" Cynthia cried out in fright, bringing everyone over.

"Oh no…Not him… Anyone but him!" Duck gasped, seeing Calamity. Calamity couldn't been whom Angel was referring to, he thought; he couldn't be! He was too young!

"What's…?" Mrs. Brisby was about to say, but then she remembered what Rev had said back in the Fitzgibbon house: 'For those still at the novice level, using those powers for many things at once over an extended period of time or on one task that requires a lot of effort can be taxing.' She also remembered the look on Calamity's face before he had agreed to help her channel the amulet's power, like he was afraid that what he was going to do would do something to him. "Oh…Oh…Oh, no! No! No!" she then cried.

"Mommy…" Cynthia whimpered, starting to cry, too.

Teresa hugged her sister and her mother, tears beginning to fall.

Many of rats, Mr. Ages, Justin, even Auntie Shrew, bowed their heads.

Tech… Oh, Tech… He felt like he had lost his little brother once again, and, like the last time, he couldn't do anything to bring him back. All he could do was blame himself for not doing something differently. He felt another howl forming in his throat, and this time, he couldn't hold it back so easily. A light touch on his shoulder brought him face-to-face with Rev.

Let it out, Rev was saying to him.

And let it out, he did. It was one of the saddest howls anyone had ever heard him release.

There wasn't a dry eye in the crowd this time. Even Duck, who knew from Angel that Calamity would eventually return to the land of the living, shed tears.

Rev knew he wasn't a coyote, but he also let out his own howl; Calamity had been his younger brother, too. Now, like Tech had, he had lost both his little brother-by-blood and little brother figure. It was a painful moment for the both of them.

Both howls lasted two whole minutes before they stopped.

Tech looked down at Calamity. He looked so peaceful, yet still had a bit of determination lingering in his features, like he was still trying to help Mrs. Brisby accomplish her mission. Tech gently caressed the young coyote's face, like he sometimes did with his younger brother when he helped put him to bed. Tears trickled down Tech's muzzle and dripped onto Calamity; he gently brushed them off. He carefully adjusted Calamity's head so that the side of his face was against his heart and lightly kissed him on the forehead. Tech began thinking of a lullaby that him, his little brother, and his mother used to sing together before bed.

"'In beauty I walk. With beauty before me I walk, With beauty behind me I walk…'"

Lexi raised her head as she felt her ears perk up. Did she just hear…?

"'With beauty above me I walk, With beauty around me I walk, It has become beauty again…'"

Yes. Yes! She did! It was slow, but it was getting stronger!

"Lexi?" Ace asked softly, seeing her expression.

Tech stopped the memory playback as he thought he felt movement. He thought he had felt the fur on Calamity's chest brush up and down against his shirt. Thought he had felt an ear twitch against his arm. Thought he had felt a small breath.

Rev softly gasped as he saw minute movement from Calamity.

Mrs. Brisby and everyone else looked to see what could be best described at the moment as a miracle happening before them.

Duck quietly sighed in relief and looked up at the sky, sending a thank-you to The One Above.

Slowly, Calamity began breathing more regularly and soon, his eyes opened. And the first thing he saw were the glistening olive-colored eyes that belonged to his big brother, Tech. Being so spent of energy, Calamity couldn't use his telepathy, so he smiled and mouthed "Tech" as his tail also began to wag in recognition.

Tech hugged Calamity and began to cry again, but this time, they were joyous tears as sighs of relief and cheers went up from the crowd. Rev, also choked up with happy emotion, came over to the coyotes and joined in the embrace.

"He's OK!" Cynthia squealed happily.

"He's alive!" Teresa beamed.

"Oh, thank the Heavens above, he's all right!" Auntie Shrew praised, despite having been rather mean to the young coyote two nights ago.

Mrs. Brisby came forward made herself part of the embrace. Gradually, Cynthia, Martin, Teresa, Ace, Auntie Shrew, Lexi, Duck, Slam, even Justin and Mr. Ages joined in.

"One, big family," Mrs. Brisby said after the embrace was over.

"Our family," Duck said, smiling.

"What is it, Cal?" Rev asked Calamity, who was trying to communicate something.

Duck then realized what it was and why a particular message had been given to him.

"Ahem. I know what it isth," Duck spoke up after clearing his throat.

Tech and Rev looked at him.

"Tech…your little bro saysth he misses you and loves you," Duck smiled.

Tech looked at Calamity, who nodded in confirmation. Tech smiled, thanking his little brother in Heaven. Mrs. Brisby also sent a silent thank-you to her husband.

A yawn was then heard from Calamity. Everyone smiled as they knew what this meant; somebody was tired.

"Once he gets a good night's sleep and some breakfast, he'll be good as new," Tech said.

Another yawn sounded off: Cynthia. Definitely bedtime.

"But, before that, a bath," Auntie Shrew added.

"Aw, Mom!" Martin groaned.

Rev giggled at Calamity's pouting look; he didn't want a bath!

"We are kinda messy," Ace chuckled, looking at the mud on himself and his friends. "Hey, uh, Justin?" he then asked the brown rat. "You said dat when you leave, you can't leave any evidence behind. Dat means ya gotta destroy da rosebush colony, right?"

"Right," Justin nodded.

"Well, how 'bout me and my pals help you wit' the demolition?" Ace offered. "Mornin'll be here soon, we can make it go faster."

"Well, we could use a couple extra hands, if you're up to it," Justin replied.

"I'm up for it," Ace grinned.

"Uh-huh!" Slam nodded.

"I'm actually feeling pretty well-energized," Lexi added. "When do we start?"

"Anything I can do?" Rev asked eagerly.

"Don't worry, we'll find something," Justin chuckled.

"All right! Let'sth go to work, then!" Duck declared, ready to start.

"Uh, Duck? You sure you wanna help in your condition?" Ace asked with a smirk.

"What condition?" Duck asked, activating his Power Eggs. "I'm-EE-YOW! OOH! OOH! OW! OW!"

Duck quickly deactivated his Power Eggs, shaking his hands wildly in pain. "Thisth hasth never happened!...Exc-th-ept when I firstht got my powersth-What's goin'…? Oh," Duck finally answered his own question when he saw his still-scorched palms.

"Sorry, Duck. Looks like you're gonna hafta sit this one out," Ace shrugged, an apologetic smile on his face.

"I think I'd better take care of mine, too," Mrs. Brisby said, her paws looking a bit burned.

"Tech? You up for some demolition?" Ace asked his genius comrade.

"Sure, Chief," Tech answered. He then felt a tug on his shirt and looked down to see Calamity giving him a "big eyes" look. Tech chuckled, resisting. "Aw, sorry, sport," he said apologetically, "but I gotta go help."

"I…I can take him," Duck volunteered.

"You sure-?"

"Yesth! Yesth. Justht…Come on," Duck told Tech, his arms outstretched.

Tech wasn't sure about giving Calamity to Duck, his protective big-brother instincts and emotions still running a bit high and Duck's hands burned, but he gave in. Duck winced a bit, but he pushed past the pain.

"Now, one other thing I want to tell you, and, a lot of the rats know this…but a few will have to stay behind, otherwise it'll look suspicious to the humans," Justin told the volunteering Loonatics. "We'll…also move the other bodies there," he added, referring to the now-deceased Sullivan, Jenner, and Nicodemus.

"Understood," Ace nodded seriously.

"Oh, before I forget; Loonatics, Calamity, and Mrs. Brisby…thank you all very much," Justin thanked the group. "You all really proved yourselves out there."

"And thank you, Justin, Mr. Ages, all of you, for saving my family," Mrs. Brisby said to the rats. "And thank you seven for all your help," she added to her friends.

"Our pleasure, Mrs. B," Ace said. "I just…wish we coulda done more," he sighed.

Justin nodded understandingly before instructing the rest of the rats to follow him and Ace, Lexi, Slam, Tech, and Rev back to the rosebush with the bodies in tow to begin the process of destroying the colony.

"Y'know," Ace began telling Justin, "now you're gonna get to see the rest our powers in action."

"Should be interesting," Justin replied.

"Yeah," Ace agreed. "But…ya know what? I've got a feelin' dat what happened to us…may have given us a bit of a boost, so…you guys might wanna watch yerselves while we're workin'," he then warned.

"I don't know what that means exactly, but OK," Justin agreed.

Meanwhile, Duck, with Calamity in his arms, was following Mrs. Brisby, her children, and Auntie Shrew back to the cement block, which was now at the lee of the stone, safe from the plow. As he walked, his brain finally registered a sharp pain in the jaw. He wondered where it came from…then he remembered.

"Duck? What's the matter?" Mrs. Brisby asked when Duck gave a groan. "Are you all right? What is it?" she asked when he didn't respond immediately.

"Hm? Oh, nothing stheriousth," Duck finally answered. "Justht givin' mysthelf a reminder that when we get home, there'sth sthomething I gotta sthay to a c-th-ertain sthpeedy roadrunner."


Oh, don't worry, Duck; I'm sure Rev's sorry for clobberin' you like that. I mean, it was a pretty intense moment there.

But yeah, the adventure group is reunited and the arrivals learn that Nicodemus is dead…but there's no time to grieve as NIMH is coming. However, Jenner doesn't believe them which leads to the big fight, and everyone get to see Duck and Ace in action, as well as see Tech use his Magnetic Manipulation. Looks like Mr. Ages found out what they had meant by having powers! Writing fight choreography is difficult, especially if you don't know the fight style being used but I think I lucked out with this one as all I had to do was keep watching the fight sequence between Jenner and Justin over and over and they were using swords, which I have seen plenty of in other movies.

If you want to know the story with Ace, his sword, and Deuce, check out the "Loonatics Unleashed" episode "Secrets of the Guardian Strike Sword". Anyway, Justin and Ace emerge victorious from the fight (with Justin giving Ace's sword back to him before using a normal sword to stab Jenner), but the evil rat isn't through yet, which leads to a rather foreign thought entering the minds of the Loonatics; they don't act on it though and Sullivan is the one who manages to save Justin…but it seems the damage of even letting he thought occur has been done. I wonder what this will mean for Acmetropolis' Finest and how it will affect them in the long run.

But it seems they're not out of trouble yet as the cement block begins to sink. Everyone is doing what they can, and Duck is using his Aqua Dense ability which was introduced in the "Loonatics Unleashed" episode "A Creep from the Deep"; however, Duck soon realizes that it is doing more harm than good, and to make matters worse, Calamity, Tech, Rev, and Mrs. Brisby soon all sink with the block, with Duck going in after them. Luckily, they come up all right, but the children and Auntie Shrew are still in danger. Which is when the heroes remember their purpose, and a bright light flashes before them before the Stone comes over. We also learn that the name of Tech's late younger brother was Shilah, which means "brother" in Navajo.

For when the eight of them grab on to each other as the Stone glows, I actually made a reference to the first "Guardians of the Galaxy" movie when Peter Quill is holding the Power Stone and Gamora, Drax, and Rocket join hands with him to help him. It's a big effort that takes a lot out of them, though, and they all end up fainting.

For when Ace wakes up, this time I make a reference to a moment in an anime called "Sword Art Online" in the episode "The Blue-Eyed Demon"; Kirito, on his last bit of health, finally manages to beat the boss monster but he faints. As he slowly comes back to consciousness, he hears someone calling, thinking it's someone else when it's actually Asuna. When he finally wakes up, he asks how long he was out to which the reply is "Just a few seconds".

For Duck, I actually have to give credit to Author PerkyGoth14 for the idea of having Duck take a slight trip to Heaven (it seems Mrs. Brisby took one too), where he meets Angel again and they talk. Now, given how I've written her dialogue, can you tell who was my inspiration for her? And as for that little "Duck-and-Zooky-almost-killing-each-other" bit, let me explain: Basically, after Duck talks to Pinkster and he FINALLY comes to grips with the fact that Pinkster was truly a villain, Duck was very upset (thank you Author Jessi the Fangirl for stimulating my imagination for this, and for Chapter 7), so much so that he practically shut down, and so to get him up and moving again, Zooky pretty much got him into a "tough-love" spar session which may or may not have almost gotten out of hand. If I ever get around to putting up that planned two-person-crossover into "Loonatics Unleashed" that I have sitting around, I'll give you the full details. So thank you PerkyGoth14 and Jessi the Fangirl for your inspiration; thank you both so much! Oh, I also made a reference to another of Don Bluth's works when Ace told Teresa to "just call him Ace"; care to guess which of Bluth's works I got that from?

Oh… Oh dear, yes. I did mention there was a sad moment, didn't I? Well, there it is; and poor Tech and Rev are just devastated. But, wait a minute…yes! Yes! Oh, Calamity's all right! Whew! Thank goodness!

Well, now that all that's out of the way, there's only one more thing to do. Now, the bit about some rats volunteering to stay behind and moving the corpses into the rosebush is actually a detail I decided to pull from the original book that inspired the movie that I found while looking at stuff surrounding the movie for this fanfic; look up the book's synopsis or read it yourself if you have it and you'll see what I mean.

Now, here come the questions:

How would you react to the arrival of Calamity, Duck, Mrs. Brisby, and Rev and what would you say to each of them?

What would be your reaction to or what would you be thinking when Rev says his outburst?

When Jenner starts going after Mrs. Brisby and Calamity, what would you do?

What would you be thinking when you saw Ace give Justin his Guardian Strike Sword?

Would you join Justin and Ace in fighting against Jenner or would you join Tech and the others in finding Duck, Calamity, and Mrs. Brisby?

What would you be thinking when you saw Justin toss Ace's sword back to him?

If you spotted Jenner above Justin about to finish him off, what would you do?

What would you tell the Loonatics as they try to come to grips with the fact that they came very close to using their powers to kill Jenner?

When the block starts to sink into the mud, how would you help in trying to save it?

When Duck realizes that his Aqua Dense is making the block sink faster and is taking his teammates with it, what would you do? How would you be reacting to seeing the events happening with Calamity and Tech, Rev and Duck, and Duck diving into the mud after Rev, the coyotes, and Mrs. Brisby?

What would you be thinking when Duck makes his confession?

What declaration would you make along with Calamity and the Loonatics?

What do you think that bright white light could have been?

When the amulet starts glowing and Mrs. Brisby, Calamity, and the Loonatics use it, what would be your reaction be or what would you be doing at that moment?

If you ended up going with Duck on his "slight trip", what would you be thinking throughout that sequence?

What would you be doing/thinking/reacting during the following: Ace waking up, Duck waking up, and seeing Calamity apparently lifeless with Tech, Rev, and the others in mourning followed by the younger coyote's revival?

Would you go with Duck and Mrs. Brisby back to the block to take care of them and Calamity or would you join Ace and the other Loonatics in helping the rats destroy the rosebush colony?

Whew… OK, that's probably the longest list of questions I have made so far, but then again, this was a pretty long chapter. In any case, I can't wait to read your responses.

Next time…well, you've probably already guessed what's coming, seeing as how everything's now taken care of and all. So, I'll just say see you soon.

And, as always, please read and review. Thank you.