Chapter 2: An unexpected visit

Going to Mars was easy. Entering Mars was a little above intermediate. However, it's finding what you're looking for in the Martian palace that was proving rather challenging.

Cadet had teleported him into a place that luckily wasn't heavily guarded. The last thing Dodgers wanted was to be wrapped in chains with his ass being hauled straight to Tyr'ahnee.

Actually now that he thought about it, it would make his self-applied mission a whole lot easier.

So being in chains was uncomfortable. But it was making his life a whole lot easier as the Centurions led him straight to Queen Tyr'ahnee and Commander X-2.

They were in a part of the palace Dodgers didn't recognise. It was filled to the brim with what seemed to be old rusted machinery. Some of which Dodgers found very familiar. He felt a sore pang in his chest as he stared at everything until his gaze landed on the woman of the hour and her little commander. They were talking with some older looking Martians Dodgers didn't recognise.

The Centurions made their presence noticed," Your royal majesty, we found an intruder in the south wing of the palace", they said as they thrusted Dodgers to their feet.

" Dodgers?", X-2 said confused.

" Hey Cueball, hey Queenie. How'sth it hangin'?", Dodgers said awkwardly," Who's your new friend over there?".

" I'm Professor Zeke'elia, historian", the Martian said in awkward shyness.

" Pleasthure to meet ya. I'd shake yer hand but I'm little occupied at the moment", he said jokingly as he showed his situation.

" Dodgers, what are you doing here?", Tyr'ahnee asked curiously while eyeing him suspiciously.

" I'm not here on Protectorate sthuff if that'sth what yer asthkin'. Cadet'sth the only one who even knowsth I'm here", Dodgers said honestly.

" Then why are you here?", X-2 asked.

Make no mistake, Commander X-2 DID NOT like Duck Dodgers. The duck was an arrogant fool who endangered people for the sake of glory when he 'saved' them. And his bitterness only grew when X-2 found out the Queen was still in love with the stupid fowl.

But then his mind went back to that faithful day. Mars and Earth had been under attack by a common enemy of both planets. It had taken nearly all its forces along with Earth's but they triumphed, but just barely.

It was that fight that changed a little of X-2's perspective on Dodgers. It wasn't a major thing but it felt like turning point for X-2.

He wasn't even sure how or why it happened, Dodgers was on the other side of the room at that stage. X-2 should've felt the stinging pain of a laser straight through his head but instead felt small feathers brushing against his head. X-2 opened his eyes to Dodgers' concerned expression, asking him if he was alright?! It baffled him, the emotion that was in the duck's clouded eyes was so raw it was like all of Dodgers' secrets had been laid before him.

It made X-2's perspective on how heartless Dodgers seemed to be, when an actual fact the duck had a heart buried under all that greed.

But that didn't mean X-2 had begun to like him. It was more above tolerance.

" You asthk why I'm here, well I'm here to talk, Cue Ball... with her royal highnessth, of coursthe", Dodgers said trying to sound casual.

Tyr'ahnee looked intrigued at best, but then again he could be reading her wrong. He just hoped she would hear him out.

" I'm listening...", Tyr'ahnee said curiously.

" Uhh... could we talk alone... maybe?", Dodgers asked.

It wasn't that he didn't think what he was about to say wasn't something the commander or the professor should hear. It's just that his pride doesn't allow him to speak freely around more than one person. And... because his pride is actually at stake.

" If you hadn't noticed Dodgers, we're quite busy at the moment", X-2 responded.

" Eh yeah... don't mind me asthkin' but... what isth all of thisth sthuff anyway?", Dodgers asked curiously.

Professor Zeke'elia took the chance to answer the duck," It's old Martian technology that been in disuse for a long time", he said," Her majesty was kind enough to allow my company to study these".

To the surprise of both the queen and the commander, Dodgers actually looked quite intrigued and urged the young professor to continue with his explanation.

Dodgers was acting different.

It didn't bother her at first. The duck breaking an entering was a little off, and coming to Mars on his own accord was not weird but it was uncommon enough to be rendered surprising when he does. Asking to talk to her privately definetly was off-putting (though it didn't fail to make her heart flutter).

But that wasn't the cherry on top. The cherry on top was what she was witnessing right in front of her.

Zeke'elia was one of the youngest and brightest professors Mars had ever encountered. As a historian, his work was enlightening and thorough and Tyr'ahnee had sometimes taken the liberty of reading some of his research. However, with his great work came his theories, some of which Tyr'ahnee had to agree was a little far-fetched.

Zeke'elia had a theory... a theory many Martians rejected. He believed that there was a past connection between Earth and Mars long before the great rivalry started. He even went as far to say that Martians had lived on Earth for long durations (it was almost laughable- Martians living on Earth, it was utterly ridiculous). He had evidence and planned to find more to back up his theory, which was the main reason Tyr'ahnee allowed him in today.

Most people would ignore Zeke'elia when he got excited over his theories, and Tyr'ahnee was certain Dodgers would have lost interest. But surprisingly, the duck paid attention and even asked questions!

And Tyr'ahnee didn't know if she were seeing things but Dodgers looked at everything rather... fondly.

They kept walking through the hall as Zeke'elia continued explaining and writing down extra notes as he observed everything along with Dodgers.

This was when things became weirder.

" Illudium Q-36 Explosthive Sthpace Modula-tor", Dodgers muttered out loud randomly.

Everybody stopped walking as they stopped walking and stared at the duck. Dodgers shivered as he realised everyone stopped walking and were gazing at him in shock.

" Uh... yesth?", Dodgers asked awkwardly.

" How did you know about that?", Zeke'elia asked eyes widened.

" What?", Dodgers asked feigning confusion.

" How did you find out about the Illudium Q-36?", X-2 asked roughly.

Shit, Dodgers cursed. He certainly placed himself in a tight spot now. Where was that convenient escape opportunity when he needed it?

Should he feign illness? He could cough his lungs out but the picture afterwards would be rather graphic (as it turned out: humans don't really like the gag where toons can cough out/ regurgitate functioning organs. Not very child-friendly... or adult-friendly either). He wanted to distract them, not possibly lock him in an laboratory to be tested on.

For the love of all creators, bring in a distraction, Dodgers pleaded.

" Queen Tyr'ahnee"

Dodgers nearly cheered when the distraction arrived. It was those three wise Martians Dodgers remembered when he was being tested to see if he would be a fit king for Mars back when he nearly married Tyr'ahnee. They certainly didn't seem pleased when they arrived on over.

They stepped forward and bowed forward a little in front of Tyr'ahnee. They then turned to greet X-2," Commander, Professor Zeke'elia-", they paused when they saw Dodgers standing weirdly," Why on Mars is Captain Duck Dodgers here?".

" He's here on personal reasons, which he will state after Professor Zeke'elia has done his research", Tyr'ahnee explained.

One of the wise Martians merely shook their head," We need to speak with you immediately, your highness", they said.

" With what exactly?", Tyr'ahnee asked.

" It's a discussion that should be dealt privately", the head wise Martian said eyeing Dodgers in a nasty way.

Dodgers rolled his eyes," Yeah yeah, I get when I'm not wanted around", he huffed," I'll be outsthide stho you can have yer lil' private chat", he said sarcastically before walking off.

Inwardly, Dodgers was jumping with joy. Happy to have avoided a crisis. He closed the door to the relic room before skipping off, lost in thought.

Dodgers would never admit it, but it was a lovely to see all those machines, designs he recognised from Marvin's endless drawings and planning of every little gun or machine. It gave him a sense of pride that all of Marvin's plans had come to fruition, it ignited a feeling of pride that Dodgers had long since forgotten.

Marvin... he missed him. He missed all of them. Along with nostalgia came the grief he never fully got over. His heart and core ached being separated by the people who truly understood him. He missed his family. His cousins from Hanna-Barbera and Freleng-De Patie, his little prodigies from every single studio who had him teach them the very basics of toonism.

But most importantly, he missed his brothers. The original Warner Bros siezed to exist, the animation studio long forgotten. The Looney Tunes had expired and all of Daffy's hard work had been lost in the black hole known as public domain.

He was all alone, in a world he still never fully understood. He was the last of his kind, a creature of ink created by blood with impossible powers that no one other than those who practiced his work would be able to wrap their heads around.

Though he often wondered, what would happen if Tyr'ahnee or the commander or IQ or Cadet or heck, even Star Johnson found out what they were capable of. He imagined it would be chaotic and mind boggling at first, but he believed Tyr'ahnee and Cadet might get a better hold of it after some practice.

He often wondered when toons stopped being toons. When were the new generations convinced themselves their universe was older than the few centuries it actually is. When did they stop using their abilities? Why does it seem like no one is having a single problem keeping their abilities under wraps when Dodgers himself is struggling to not pull out a portable hole or crush someone with a large anvil or piano?

When did life go from chaotic and fun to serious and provincial?

When did toons forget their roots?

When did HE forget his roots?

Dodgers stopped and stood in front of the mirror in the hall and looked, really looked at himself. His head feathers had grown longer and his once vibrant emerald orbs had dulled significantly. There were bags under his eyes from his lack of sleep and frequent smoking endeavors. He had considered drinking but it's much easier to hide cigarette packaging than bottles of incredibly strong vodka (damn his toonage for giving strong resistance to the effects of alcohol when he REALLY wanted to get drunk).

He hasn't preened his feathers in months, which will come back and bite him in the arse, he was sure of it. He had time but between trying to get high to remove the negativity within him (he knew that's not how it worked but if only he could be happy, for just a little while).

It was clear as day. Duck Dodge- no Daffy Duck had truly hit rock bottom this time. He wasn't Dodgers at the moment. even though he was in uniform, no the person in the mirror staring back with empty, passion-less eyes was Daffy Duck, or at least a shell of what once was Daffy. He's lost his passion, his zest for life, his muchness as his deceased friends would have put it.

He was like an angel who had fallen from grace. Only he's a toon whose no longer in front of the camera.

He walked into another hallway and was greeted by several varieties of paintings and sculptures. He had to admire the effort, they were beautiful all things considering.

Dodgers looked about and frowned. He had been so lost in a daze he had lost himself. He clicked his tongue in irritation. Just when he believed he was getting better, he loses himself inside of a palace.

He continued walking, hoping to get back to the room where he was previously. But got even more lost in the process.

' Story of my life', Dodgers thought bitterly.

He'd just have to find a centurion soldier and have them take him back to Tyr'ahnee. Dodgers hoped her impromptu meeting would be over by the time he was dragged over.

End of Chapter 2

Again, I would like to thank everyone, especially guest Gamergirl18 for the support of the rewrite. Things will get interesting after this, I promise.