Ch.9: A Torn Soul
(Daffy's POV - FlashBack)
I never thought the day would come when I'd regret my dreams of grandeur for a life that I had left behind. Yet, as I calmly sat in my captain's chair, cradling the precious egg Tinana had gave me in my lap, my mind could focus on nothing but regrets.
"This could have been mine and Tina's egg," I thought to myself.
Tina, Bugs, Porky, Plucky, and all the other cartoon folk I got to know over the years, I missed them all. How ironic then my egg should be born on a day of tragedy, which passed nearly three centuries ago.
The Cadet took notice of my silence, but fortunately he was smart enough not to say a word. Tinana was in a chamber near the back of the ship, recovering from her little trip to the hospital. I didn't dare say the words to her face, but it almost felt wrong to be with her, as if I were betraying the one person I loved so long ago.
Conflict soon came to distract me from my guilt, as Drake Darkstar, my evil look-alike, that my Cadet selected once to get rid of me, decided to attack. He was still a little upset about the way I had regained my status as Protectorate captain and sent him back to the pokey, but I had no real regrets, as long as I got my revenge.
However, right now I did have worries, a fierce space battle such as this one wouldn't be safe for either my new egg or wife, if Drake Darkstar was so dead set on revenge. Really, I just gotten on terms with the Martian menace, I didn't need some other wacko to make sure things got harder.
Drake Darkstar had obviously come prepared with a better armed ship .It even had this whole new wormhole feature that I've never seen before. I thought the lab boys back on Freeling were still in beta-testing with that thing!
Dodging what laser fire we could, the Cadet and I managed to get the ship close to the atmosphere of Acmetropolis before Darkstar jumped in front, blasted what remained of our engines, and prepared for the final strike.
"This is the end Dodgers," I heard him say.
"Quick Cadet" I shouted " to the ERV!"
But the little porker was already ahead of me, escorting Tinana into the recreational vehicle while I ran far behind them. Just as I was about to jump, a sudden, horrifying thought occurred when I realized that I left the egg back on the bridge. A powerful shock suddenly shook the hull, and I knew Darkstar had fired.
"Hurry Captain!" shouted the Cadet " The ship's going to blow!"
"Take care of Tinana!" I told the Cadet, and then pressed the button for the ship's launch.
There was no time to stick around to see the shock written on their faces, as I dashed way back to the bridge, and retrieved the egg from my chair. An alarm buzzed out, warning that the ship was mere seconds from explosion, and I hurried my way to the evaporator room.
Punching in some quick coordinates, I quickly jumped myself and the egg into the evaporator, not knowing where it would lead. Unfortunately, it had to be the inside of Darkstar's hull. It only took a second for the dark duck to see I was there.
"Well Dodgers" said Darkstar " this was foolish of you. Sacrificing yourself for an impossible battle that you were never meant to win, and you even brought a helpless infant for the ride,"
Just as he said that, my ship exploded outside, leaving nowhere safe to evaporate too. I was stranded now, stranded with a legacy now held close to my beating heart.
Suddenly, something strange happened, just as Darkstar was about to blast me and the egg back to kingdom come, his ship jolted hard, and the wormhole program he stole activated, trapping us in its vortex.
The winds it created were to strong for us to refuse. Darkstar plunged in first, and my egg followed afterward. Eventually, I too lost my grip and tumbled into the abyss. My reign as a hero was over. It would appear, on this day, I would truly die.
(Tinana's POV – FlashBack)
Me and the Cadet just sat there in the hull of the flying RV, our eyes unable to tear away from the frightening sight displaying before us. Duck Dodger's ship, with what only we could consider my husband and egg on board, exploded into an endless sea of shards.
One of the shards struck out like a miniature missile, blasting a hole into Darkstar's ship with the force of a bomb. The wormhole opened up next, destroying anything that lay in path. Everything disappeared, doomed to wonder forever throughout the unknown.
Tears escaped from my eyes, as our own vehicle continued to soar towards Acmetropolis. My body trembled over with sadness. My husband and egg were now forever gone, and I knew, in my heart, that I would never see them again.
(Back To The Present)
"Wha…Where am I?" wondered Daffy woozingly, as his body slowly adjusted from being brought back to life.
"Welcome back Duck Dodgers," called out an unknown voice, making Daffy's mind shift back into focus.
Looking up, his lazy, blue eyes could see the slightly familiar forms of toons he was sure he had never met. One looked like an electronic version of Elmer Fudd, another looked like a psycho epic of Porky, and the third…
Well the third one was a black duck, just like him, only different looking, shorter too. His beak was orange, and bent like a shovel face, while his burned with a hint of evil fire.
"Who the heck are you guys?!" said Daffy, finally finding the strength to stand.
"Just fans of your work" responded the duck " my father, Drake Darkstar, would kill to see you again,"
"Darkstar huh?" said Daffy, backing up " Hope you don't mind if I skip out on the party?"
"Who said you'd have a choice?" said Pinkster, pointing his gun dead on at the duck.
"Alright Daffy" Daffy thought to himself " you need to think of a plan here. You're surrounded by a trio of villains, with the only escape route blocked off, any chance you can go around them? Hmm…maybe, it's been many years, but I'll give it a shot,"
"Hey Fudd-tron" said Daffy to Electro " you got some spare rope in that doohickey of yours?"
"Why do you want rope?" asked Electro confused.
"Well" said Daffy, logically " if you're gonna wake me up just to kidnap me, wouldn't it make sense to bind my hands and feet so I can't struggle and escape?"
Electro looked between Mal Darkstar and Pinkster, as if seeking permission to follow Daffy's request. They both nodded, and Electro pulled out his rope, walking steadily towards Daffy Duck.
"One" Daffy slowly counted as Electro approached "Two…Three!"
On three, Daffy jumped and grabbed Electro's rope, then spun the villain around, twining the rope around his body. Once fully twined, Daffy tugged at the free end of the rope, and twirled the dizzy villain straight towards Pinkster, knocking the unespecting pig down like a bowling pin.
"HooHoo! Hoo!Hoo!" laughed Daffy, bouncing up down, speeding off as Mal Darkstar gave chase.
Taking cover behind a nearby corner, Daffy breathed hastily out of breath.
"Whoo" said Daffy " I'm getting to old for this. Just what do these guys think I am a target?"
A shot from Mal Darkstar's blaster came dangerously close to hitting as his answer. Suddenly feeling rejuvenated, Daffy dashed down the hallways again, looking for any way out of the artic complex.
"RV? No! Snowmobile? No! Ahah!" Daffy Duck said at last " An Evaporator! Hmm, looks like an updated model. I'll just carefully set the coordinates, and beyond my way to civilization!"
Setting the code for Acmetropolis, Daffy stepped into the machine and prepared to be evaporated, when Mal Darkstar stormed in, face boiling with rage.
"You're not going anywhere duck!" said Mal " Master Rasvim wishes to see you,"
With that said, Mal shot his weapon at the control panel of the evaporator, attempting to nullify the transfer attempt, but the shot appeared to have the opposite attempt. The transportation wasn't foiled, but the coordinates were reset. Daffy Duck aka Duck Dodgers, now found himself stranded in the middle of the Martian Desert.