JDE: Metal Mouth's Revenge

Chapter Two: Assault and Battery

It was early evening in Saint Canard. Within the Justice Ducks' headquarters, Quiverwing Quack and Straight Arrow, in their civillian guises of Gosalyn Mallard and Honker Muddlefoot, were packing for a romantic weekend away. It had been a slow couple of weeks, crimewise, so the couple decided to take the opportunity to be alone together.

"You sure you and the others will be okay by yourselves?" Gosalyn asked Aqueous, her erstwhile teammate, who was currently on monitor duty.

"Fear not." Aqueous smiled. "The greatest danger we would face is being bored to death. Go, enjoy yourselves."

"Oh, we will." Gosalyn snuggled up to Honker.

"We'll be back on Monday." Honker smiled. "Sadly."

After the pair had left, Aqueous, acknowledging the lack of crime detected in the city, decided to busy himself in the gym. Normally, he'd spar with his teammates, but Gizmoduck 2.0 and Spellbound had also taken advantage of the lull in crime to attend to personal matters, so Aqueous resorted to using the equipment instead. After lifting some titanium weights, he went to work on a punching bag. The bag had been specially designed by McDuck Industries, becoming harder or softer depending on the strength of the user.

"An adequate workout." Aqueous said to himself. "What I wouldn't give for a opponant that hits back..."

Suddenly, the wall of the gym was blasted open by a burst of energy. When the dust settled, Aqueous saw Metal Mouth, riding on the Bronze Boarder's board.

"Ask, and ye shall receive." Metal Mouth quipped.

"You!" Aqueous growled.

"Surprised to see me?" Metal Mouth asked.

"Indeed." Aqueous nodded. "Even more so to see your mode of transportation. What did you do to the Bronze Boarder?"

"That is none of your concern." Metal Mouth sneered. "Your more pressing worry should be what I am about to do to you!"

Metal Mouth thrust one hand forward, releasing an orb of energy. Leaping to one side, Aqueous dodged the blast and went for his trusty trident. Charging Metal Mouth, Aqueous used the trident as a pole vault, bringing his feet into Metal Mouth's face. The impact thrust the villain onto the rooftop of an adjacent building.

"Impressive, brute." Metal Mouth sneered. "But surely, even your barbaric mind realises that you are no match for me in my current state."

"I am a warrior, villain." Aqueous retorted. "I never yield."

"Admirable." Metal Mouth admitted. "But foolish!"

Metal Mouth unleashed another energy blast, sending Aqueous flying into a neon sign. His shell taking the brunt of the impact, Aqueous grabbed some sparking electric wires. As Metal Mouth flew up to attack, Aqueous leapt down, wrapping the wires around the villain. The current barely phased him.

"Pathetic." Metal Mouth spat, as he broke free of the wire, creating a shockwave that sent Aqueous flying.

Using his trident, Aqueous anchored himself to a nearby building. Flipping onto the roof, he spotted an iron girder, left over from a construction job. As Metal Mouth charged him, she swung the girder, catching him on the temple. He then leapt onto the board, throwing punches and trident jabs at point blank range, with Metal Mouth too shaken from the girder hit to effectively use his new-found powers.

"You may have the Boarder's powers, but you do not have his experience!" Aqueous taunted, as he dodged another energy blast.

With it's rider unable to focus, the board flew out of control, finally coming down in the city park. After the crash, Aqueous grabbed Metal Mouth, pinning his arms at the sides.

"I'll only ask you one more time." Aqueous snarled. "Where is the Boarder?"

"You brine-soaked baboon!" Metal Mouth snarled.

Beams of light erupted from Metal Mouth's eyes, enveloping Aqueous' body.

"What... is... this?" Aqueous groaned, feeling as if his entire body was growing heavy.

"I've slowed down your metabolism." Metal Mouth smirked, pulling himself free from Aqueous' grip. "Soon, you will become little more then a living statue. Now, if you'll excuse, I have more pressing matters to attend to... Old friends to visit, shall we say?"

Aqueous tried to speak out, but his metabolism had slowed to the point where he could barely move his jaw.

Climbing back on the board, Metal Mouth flew off into the night sky, leaving the frozen Aqueous to fear for his friends' lives.

To Be Continued...

(Darkwing Duck and all associated characters are the property of Disney.)