Wildwing reminded himself that as dirty, tired, and hungry as he was, Ruby was even dirtier, more tired, and hungrier than him. Her legs were very unsteady and she kept losing her footing on the parts that were steep or the soil was loose. He had finally bitten the proverbial bullet and let her hang onto his wing to steady her.
As soon as they were on flat ground, she had thanked him with a smile and let go. He knew he should have been relieved that she was no longer touching him, but he wasn't. He tried to figure out what was going on with his feelings.
How could he be attracted to her in any shape, way, or form? She was a blue beak, the monster in the dark that he had been warned about since before he could remember. She had taken his mask, though, technically, it wasn't really his. She was the enemy. He just didn't understand why he felt the way he did.
He was eternally glad that his bike was parked in an out of the way spot that most people didn't know about. He didn't really have the energy to deal with his fans right now. There was also the little fact that him being spotted with Ruby would set the rumor mill on fire again and he wasn't in the mood to put out those flames. The whole thing with Mallory sitting on his lap at the mall was still giving him fits.
All in all, it had taken them nearly three times as long to get back to his bike than it normally would have. Once they were there, he stored their bags under the seat and pulled out both helmets. She took hers and raised an eyebrow at him. She held up two fingers with a slightly amused look on his face.
"Guess Mako got to me," he muttered with a shrug.
He quickly got his helmet strapped on and then got on the bike, refusing to acknowledge the small smile on her beak. She carefully climbed on behind him and pushed herself as far back as possible. Before he could point out that having her that far back would make riding difficult, the salamander appeared and climbed onto the bike in front of Wildwing.
"What do you think you're doing?" Wildwing asked, less than amused by the creature.
I'm going with you, the salamander answered in a mater of fact tone.
"Not there, you're not," Wildwing heatedly told the Elemental. "I have to lean over that part and you're in the way. Get on the back."
The salamander glared at the duck until a wing came around and tapped the Elemental on the tail. The creature turned quickly, as if to strike, and saw that it was Ruby trying to get his attention. She waved him to the back of the bike and discontentedly, he slinked to the back, sulking the entire way. He climbed up the back rack, not looking the least bit pleased about where he was.
"Can you do that invisible thing like the Forest Lord?" Wildwing questioned and the salamander scowled at him. "Six foot long, flaming salamanders aren't exactly common on this planet."
With the most put upon sigh, the salamander disappeared from view. Wildwing gave a satisfied nod before turning back around. He started the bike with an expert kick and slowly rolled them out of the parking lot.
As soon as they were on the road, Wildwing brought them up to speed. After the first turn, he quickly pulled over. He looked back at Ruby and saw that she was hanging onto the rack with a death grip and her eyes were squeezed shut. Wildwing gently touched her knee and she nearly jumped right out of her seat.
"Have you ever ridden on a motorcycle before?" he asked and she shook her head 'no'. "You'd enjoy it more if you relaxed."
She looked at him as if he had lost his mind.
"It's hard to make the turns with you plastered to the rack like that," he pointed out. "Hold onto me and lean when I lean. I'll take it slow. I promise."
As soon as the words were out of his beak, he regretted them. Her eyes glowed briefly and he could feel the magic bind him. The look Ruby gave him was easy enough to read. 'You idiot' it said louder than words.
"I'm going to regret that, aren't I?" he asked.
She nodded with a less than amused smirk on her beak and he sighed.
"Just move forward, ok?" he requested as he turned back around.
Wildwing wanted to kick himself. He knew that promises were important to her, but he hadn't thought when he spoke. He just hoped that going slow didn't mean they'd get there faster walking.
After several seconds of mentally berating himself, he felt her hands settle on his waist. That was better than her hanging onto the rack, but it wasn't good enough. He grabbed her hands and pulled her forward until she was pressed into his back.
Having so much of her body against his sent a massive shiver up his spine. His body was reacting to her in a most unexpected way. He held onto her hands as she tried to pull away. He knew that she thought the shiver was caused by revulsion and it should have been, but it wasn't. He couldn't bring himself to admit it to himself, so he said nothing.
"Hold on and lean when I lean," he instructed, not daring to look her in the face.
Wildwing placed Ruby's hands on his stomach and fought down another shiver. He restarted the bike and pulled away from the curb when it was safe to do so. He had made a promise to her and now she was pressed against his back. Had he left his brain back up at the meadow? Or maybe it just never got out of bed this morning.
Despite the distraction of her practically being glued to his back, the ride out of the hills was rather pleasant. Once they made it onto a straight stretch of road, the promise came and bit him on the tail feathers. He had to drive five miles under the speed limit. Try as he might, he just couldn't go any faster.
A few miles from The Pond, he noticed her trembling. While he had the engine of the bike in front of his chest and her draped across his back, she only had his heat. Even though it was a typical late June afternoon in southern California, they were on an open air vehicle and most of the back of her shirt was gone.
"We're almost there," he told her. "We'll get you warmed up once we're there."
She's not cold, the salamander growled.
Wildwing had forgotten that the Elemental was with them.
"Then why is she shivering?" Wildwing demanded over the wind and the roar of the engine.
She's exhausted, the salamander replied peevishly. How much longer?
"A few more miles," Wildwing answered.
Are you going as fast as you can? the salamander asked.
"Yes," Wildwing snapped. "I can't go any faster than five miles under the speed limit."
That will teach you to be more careful with your promises, the salamander retorted.
Wildwing said nothing and concentrated on going as fast as he could. Those last few miles seemed to stretch on forever. They were down to the last mile when felt her wings loosen around his middle. Suddenly her weight about doubled as something hot wrapped around his waist.
Keep going, the salamander instructed. She's passed out. I'll hold her on, you just get us there.
Wildwing pushed the bike as fast as he could, but the promise held. What seemed like an eternity later, he finally pulled into the garage under The Pond. With a sigh of relief, he turned off the bike and set the kickstand down.
I'll hold her until you get off the bike, the salamander stated as the hot band around Wildwing's middle disappeared.
Wildwing threw his leg over the front of the bike, stood and turned in one smooth movement. The salamander hadn't reappeared, so it was a bit disconcerting to see Ruby passed out and sitting up on her own. Wildwing took hold of her arm and that's when she started to fall.
"You could have held on a bit longer," Wildwing grumbled as he scrambled to catch her.
Only if you wanted to get burned, the salamander snapped back. I can reduce the heat in my tail enough not to burn you, but that heat had to go somewhere.
Wildwing looked down at the seat and saw scorch marks on it. He briefly wondered if he could fix it before Tanya noticed. His tech always got a bit snippy when someone damaged something that she then had to fix.
Wildwing finally managed to get Ruby up into his wings without any help from the salamander. As he finished getting her situated, her face came to rest against his neck. Her breath was soft and warm against his feathers and the mother of all shivers went racing down his spine.
By The First Egg! Why was he attracted to her? He got through the whole thing with DeCoy without so much as a twitch. That traitorous female was a stunning beauty, yet it was the female who could roast him alive that he was reacting to. What the heck was wrong with him?
He headed toward the medical ward, trying to get his emotions under control. He got to the hallway outside of his destination before he ran into any of his team. Wildwing cringed internally when he saw that one of the two was Mallory.
"Woah, you caught the blue, uh, the mage?" Nosedive asked excitedly. "Way to go, bro!"
"Not exactly," Wildwing started.
"Excellent!" Mallory exclaimed as she came up behind the youngest member of the team. "Now we can force her to tell us where she hid the mask."
There was an intense wave of heat as the salamander abruptly appeared between Wildwing and the other two. The Elemental hissed at Mallory as the flames that had once been small and few were now large and many.
"Yipes!" Nosedive shouted as he jumped back and up, somehow ending up in Mallory's wings.
"Really?" Mallory grumbled as Nosedive gave her a big grin just before she dropped him on his tail feathers off to the side. "What is the heck is that thing!?"
"It's the salamander," Wildwing hastily explained. "Do NOT go for your weapons."
"Why not?" Mallory demanded with her hand resting on the grip of her blaster and Nosedive reaching for his.
Because I will gladly burn every feather off of your worthless bodies, the salamander snarled.
"What the heck!?" Mallory shouted in shock.
"Did the lizard just talk?" Nosedive squeaked.
"He's a salamander and yes, he can talk," Wildwing answered a bit irritably. "Now, if you three don't mind, I'd like to put her down."
The salamander arched his back like an angry cat and moved toward Mallory and Nosedive. The heat he radiated forced them to move back with Nosedive scrambling to get to his feet as soon as he was safely out of the Elemental's range. Wildwing quickly stepped into the med ward and laid Ruby down on the bed.
The salamander followed him in and started to explore the room. Wildwing ignored the creature as he started to work on untying the knots in Ruby's shoe laces. Nosedive and Mallory slipped in behind him, but Wildwing was concentrating on the dirt encrusted knot.
"So, how did you managed to capture her by yourself?" Mallory asked as Wildwing got the first shoe off. "Must have been some fight since you're both covered in dirt."
"I didn't capture her," Wildwing hastily stated when he saw the fire Elemental starting to get upset. "I'll explain what happened once everyone is together."
A moment later, the sound of running feet reached them.
"You suddenly become psychic, bro?" Nosedive questioned.
"No," Wildwing grumbled as he got the other shoe off.
"What the heck happened to the floor?" Duke demanded from the hallway.
"Whatever it was probably, you know, was what set off Drake One," Tanya replied.
"In here, guys," Mallory called and the remaining team mates squeezed into the room.
"Great Mother of Ducks!" Duke exclaimed when he saw who was in the bed.
"Ok, we're all here," Mallory stated. "Want to tell us what's going on, oh fearless leader?"
Wildwing told them about his day as he covered Ruby with a blanket. He kept an eye on the salamander as the Elemental examined every inch of the room. Wildwing finished his tale just as the Salamander disappeared under the bed.
"So, now what do we do?" asked Duke.
"We're going back up to that meadow and finish cleaning up the mess we helped to create," Wildwing stated.
"And what about her?" Mallory demanded. "We're not just going to leave her here by herself, are we?"
"Who wants to stay here to watch over her?" Wildwing inquired.
I will gladly watch over the pretty one, a sultry female voice stated.
The ducks all turned toward the door and saw a being that left all six beaks hanging open. She was stunningly beautiful. Her lovely human face was surrounded by a cascade of golden hair and her body was draped with feathers that shimmered with a golden glow. The ducks couldn't move, other than to watch this amazing creature as she floated across the room to the bed. Her cloak opened up and some small part of their still functioning brains realized that it was, in fact, a fully formed wing, not clothing.
The wing stretched out to the mage, lightly brushing Ruby's cheek. The mesmerizing being let out a hiss between her perfect teeth and the feathers that had made contact with the sleeping duck were turning black. The salamander exploded out from under the bed just as the strange creature lunged for Ruby.
The feathered being let out an unholy shriek as the two Elementals made contact, snapping the ducks out of their stupor. As one, the Mighty Ducks activated their armor as the battling creatures tumbled out into the hallway. Once the transformations were complete, Wildwing lead his team after the two combatants.
"Don't shoot the salamander," Wildwing ordered as they followed the wresting beings down the corridor.
"Why not?" Nosedive asked, his blaster aimed at the moving target.
"Because as annoying as he is, Ruby likes him and if we hope to ever see the mask again, we might not want to tick her off," Wildwing responded while he watched for a clear shot of the thing that the salamander was fighting.
The creature that had unexpectedly shown up in the medical bay didn't look anything like the creature the salamander was fighting. The long, flowing golden locks and shimmering feathers were gone, replaced with dirty, matted hair and feathers that were as black as night. The face had gone from a lovely visage to a withered, old hag and the perfect teeth now looked like they had come out of a shark's mouth.
The feathered thing screamed as the salamander ripped feathers out and the ducks cringed at the sound. They could finally see that the other creature's feet were that of a bird of prey.
"What is that thing?" Mallory demanded as the Elementals rolled out into the garage.
Once they were in an area with more open space, the feathered creature was able to break free of the salamander and take flight. She circled around and dived for the fire Elemental, her talons reaching for him. The salamander spit out a ball of fire that hit her in the face.
She crashed to the ground and the salamander leaped onto her back. He began tearing feathers out with his feet and mouth, his flames burning brighter and hotter. She let out another scream that left the ducks reeling as she managed to shake the fire Elemental off. She took to the air again, circling well out of the range of the salamander's fire.
However, she wasn't out of range of the puck blasters. Not a lot of pucks made their mark, but it was enough to draw her attention away from her fiery foe and onto the ducks. With a scream of fury, she dove for Wildwing's team.
"Uh oh," Nosedive managed to utter before they dove out of the way.
Wildwing rolled onto his back and brought his shield up, barely managing to avoid being skewered by those wicked talons. He saw a flash of red out of the corner of his eye. Instinctively, he braced for impact which was good as the salamander used the shield as a launching pad.
With an angry squawk, the black creature flapped as hard as she could to escape. She still lost a few more feathers to the salamander, but she managed to avoid him for the most part. She started to circle near the ceiling as the ducks brought their weapons back up. She dove, but not at them or the salamander.
"She's headed for the hallway!" Mallory yelled as she started to run toward the corridor.
"What is that thing after?" Tanya asked as she and the others followed their team mate.
"She's after Ruby!" Wildwing answered when he realized the hallway the creature was headed for lead to the medical bay.
"We're not going to make it in time," Nosedive warned as the salamander pulled ahead of them.
The creature made it into the hallway seconds before they did. Wildwing worried what this thing wanted from Ruby. From the salamander's reaction, it couldn't be anything good. He put on a burst of speed that he didn't know he was capable of.
"Get back, you over grown buzzard!" Duke yelled from down the corridor.
Wildwing belatedly realized that Duke wasn't with them. As they got to the medical ward, they found Duke fighting off the black menace with his Ducksaber. The salamander slammed into the feathered beast as Wildwing shot her with an exploding puck.
She let out a scream that dropped the ducks and the salamander to the ground. By the time they recovered, the thing was gone and the salamander looked angry enough to burn something.
"What was that thing?" Wildwing was finally able to ask as he slowly climbed to his feet.
A harpy, the salamander grumbled. We have to find her and destroy her before she comes back.
She is gone, a soft female voice said.
It took them a few moments to find the owner of the voice. She was almost invisible and not very large. She floated a few feet above the salamander and for whatever reason, she looked sad.
Where is she, sylph? The salamander demanded.
She has gone, the sylph answered in that quiet voice. She went out the way I came in, through a metal tube to the outside.
"She might have gotten out through one of the, you know, ventilation shafts, but they're too small for the something the size of that thing to get through," Tanya stated.
There is damage to the tube, the sylph stated. I'm sorry I could not stop her.
You would have been nothing more than a snack to that vile thing, the salamander assured the small air Elemental. You can at least warn us if she returns.
I can stay? The sylph asked excitedly.
For now, the fire Elemental answered as he found a large black feather and ate it.
The sylph made a sound like delicate bells chiming and zipped into the medical ward. Wildwing looked into the room and saw the small Elemental hovering over the head of the bed. She looked like Christmas had just come early.
"Salamanders and harpies and sylphs, oh my!" Duke muttered.
"Could this day get any weirder?" Nosedive rhetorically asked.