Ace and the rest of the gang were all smiles as they jetted off towards Rev's hometown, except for Danger who was just along for the ride because Zadavia insisted that he go. The plan was to fly to the town's aerospace depot and park the Mark 1 jet for the day while they were in town visiting Rev and Tech; they were supposed to meet with Ralph who'd take them from the depot to the Runners' place.
"Alright, gang, we're almost there." Ace announced, "You guys got everything?" "Check," Lexi said cheerfully holding up a couple of shopping bags, "Yep!" Slam nodded eagerly as he held up a shopping bag. "Those two better appreciate all the trouble we're going through," Duck quacked, "It's not like we have to be doing this. I don't know why we all had to go, either."
"I guess Zadavia figured the city would survive one day without us. Plus, it's not like she can't let us know if trouble breaks out." "Yeah, yeah, if you say so, fearless leader." Duck grumbled.
"Just try to be nice, okay Duck?" Lexi said, practically begging, "Tech said Rev's been having a really rough time in PT and is really sick and exhausted, so, please just try to pretend like you want to be there." "Alright, alright! Sheesh," Duck groaned, "I can't believe all four of us are flying all the way out to Yokel-Ville just to visit the nerds for one day. I'm just saying, we could've hollo-phoned them."
"Yeah," Ace shrugged, "But Zadavia said to visit them in person, so that's what we're doing. Plus, I have a feeling the guys are really going to appreciate the stuff we got 'em. Tech, especially; poor guy must be going insane trying to live off of snake bacon and birdseed." At that, everybody couldn't help but burst into laughter.
As the team approached the depot's parking area, Lexi and Slam gathered their bags and everyone made sure they were buckled up before Ace began to descend into an empty stretch of asphalt. "Odd, I don't see Ralph anywhere," Ace said looking around the pick-up area nearby. "So who's going to take us to Rev's folks' place?" Lexi asked. Ace just shrugged and said, "I'm not sure, Lex. Maybe he's just late or he's parked somewhere out in front of the depot. We'll just have to wait and see."
Ace carefully sat the jet down in one of the parking ports and hopped out of the jet followed by the others. Slam handed Lexi her bags as they dismounted and Duck just looked around hoping to spot Ralph somewhere nearby. "Great," Duck scoffed, "We came all this way and Rev's dad couldn't even bother to meet us here!"
"You guys looking for Ralph Runner?" a voice asked. The gang turned to see a young roadrunner standing a few yards away holding a hot pink tote bag; they had a large tail plume like a cock but their head feathers looked more like a hen's and was styled into a short pixie bob.
Their body feathers and tail plume were a deep purple while their head feathers and the tips of their tail feathers were colored a light lilac and their eyes were a deep reddish chestnut hue. They wore a black top with 'R&R Life' in bold hot pink letters, a pink plaid skirt with a leather belt and gold buckle hung from their hips, and a pair of pink and white stripped thigh-high leggings came up out of their thick lilac boots.
"Buzz off, kid. Can't you see we're busy?" Duck lisped. "You know Ralph Runner?" Lexi asked. "Of course I do, he's my uncle." The roadrunner chirped, "Name's Dakota, Dakota Dash. I was heading to my aunt's place when Ralph called and asked if I could 'fill in' for him. No idea what he meant by that but, whatever. Probably another 'emergency' over at the main office."
"Uh… okay," Ace droned, "So, how are we going to get to the Runners' place?" "Follow me," Dakota said waving the team on, "My van's out in the front." The other Loonatics just turned to each other and shrugged before trotting after Dakota. They followed the strange bird out to the front civilian parking lot in front of the depot where a large hover van painted sky blue with a psychedelic pink and purple floral pattern on the sides near the back was waiting.
"Wow, what the heck? Did you buy this thing during the last resurgence or something?" Lexi chuckled. "I just like pretty flowers." Dakota shrugged, "A buddy of mine up north was wanting to get rid of it and sold it to me for cheap. I restored, repainted it, and it's been my number-one ride ever since." "Translation: Gay." Duck whispered as Dakota passed by, letting out a yelp as the roadrunner's tail feathers slapped him upside the head on his way by. "Now toss your junk in the back and let's hit the road," Dakota chirped, "I was supposed to be there two hours ago."
Rev groaned as the TENS device stimulated the muscles on his arms and thighs. Tech and Harriet stood close by, monitoring his time on the machine and offering him company throughout the treatment session. "I can't take it anymore," Rev cried, "Take them off. Now, please!"
Tech nodded and quickly deactivated the TENS device before carefully removing the electrodes from Rev's limbs. "How long did he last this time, Harriet?" Tech asked as he helped Rev out of the recliner and supported him as he slipped back into his pajama pants. Harriet checked the meter on the device and read out the duration time, "Five minutes even. Hey, that's two whole minutes longer than last time."
"I still wish I could go longer," Rev sighed, "I know I'm beating a dead horse at this point, but I really feel like I'm never going to get better." "Don't worry, Rev, you're actually making decent progress." Tech assured him, "Going from just two-minute sessions to a full five-minute session in just three days is remarkable. To be honest, I thought you'd take at least a week to make it this far."
"Tech's right," Harriet said placing her hand on Rev's shoulder, "You'll see, you'll be back fighting for truth and justice in no time." Rev smiled and nodded as Tech led him over to the sofa and helped him ease down on the cushions. Tech reached into his tote bag and pulled out a pair of one-pound weights and handed them to Rev. "Alright, let's work some of that lactic acid out of your system." Rev whimpered as he took the weights in his hands and looked at them nervously. "Just take it one pump at a time." Tech said gently.
Rev took a deep breath and began doing slow, gentle curls with the weights, but couldn't do more than two or three at a time without having to stop for a few moments and catch his breath. After three or four sets, Rev begged Tech to take the weights back and Tech quickly took them and put them back in the tote before Rev collapsed onto the sofa with a pained groan.
"Great work today, Rev." Tech said with a smile. "Ugh, if you say so, Tech," Rev moaned. Harriet walked over with the TENS device and handed it to Tech so he could pack it away before sitting on the sofa next to Rev.
"You okay, dear?" Harriet asked softly. "What do you think, Ma?" Rev sighed; Rev turned to see Harriet looking at him with concern. Rev sighed and said, "I'm sorry, Ma. I'm just so sick and tired of being sick and tired." "I understand, Rev," Harriet nodded, "I probably would be, too. But Tech is right; you're making great progress already. You still have a long way to go, but you're up to a great start. You'll bounce back sooner than you think. You'll see." Rev smiled and sat up, wrapping his arms around Harriet in a loose hug; Harriet smiled and returned Rev's embrace.
Both roadrunners let out a yelp as a loud knock sounded from the front door, startling them. Tech shot up and signaled for them to calm down and stay quiet before making his way to the front door. The coyote let out a chuckle as he looked through the peep hole and saw a few familiar faces standing outside. "It's okay," Tech pipped, "We've got guests. Nice guests."
Rev and Harriet exchanged a glance before looking back to Tech in curiosity as Tech unlocked the door and opened it. Rev's eyes lit up as the other Loonatics filed into the house. "Guys!" Rev chirped, sliding off the sofa and trotting over to give Ace and Lexi a hug.
"We missed you, too, Rev." Lexi chuckled. "Oh," Rev backed up as Lexi reached up and handed him the shopping bag she had hanging over her right arm. "I brought you something. I think you'll really like it." Rev reached in and pulled out a tan long-sleeved shirt with a black squishmallow cat character; a smile stretched across Rev's beak as he draped it over his arm and reached in to the bag and pulled out a pair of soft tan knee-length pajama pants and black thigh-high socks.
"Figured you'd like a nice comfy outfit to lounge in," Lexi chuckled. Rev let out a squeak and wrapped his arms around Lexi and said, "Thanks, Lex. I love it." "See, Lexi, I told you he would like it," Duck said teasingly. Danger let out a nervous chuckle as Slam let out a warning growl, "He-he… never mind. Killjoys." Tech sighed and rolled his eyes.
"Oh, we got you something, too, Tech." Ace said pointing to Slam. "Me?" Tech asked. Slam smiled as he handed Tech a grocery bag full of various all-beef meat products. "Ooh, kielbasa!" Tech said with an excited squeak. "Kielbasa?" Harriet pipped, dashing over to Tech and looking inside the grocery bag, "Oh wow, all-beef baloney," Harriet exclaimed happily, "I haven't had this in a long time; they stopped carrying it at the local store."
"Finally, we can have something else to eat protein-wise besides that nasty snake bacon Pa always buys." Rev said making a gagging gesture with his hand. "Snake bacon?" a voice cried, "Good grief, Ralph is seriously still buying that garbage?" Rev turned to see Dakota strutting in through the front door. "Hey, baby cousin," Dakota said with a wave, "How're you feeling?"
"Dakota? You're back!" Rev peeped, "Well I'll be darned," Harriet laughed. The three roadrunners ran into the middle of the living room and embraced each other in a jubilant group hug.
"So you do know this guy?" Duck asked. "Of course we know them," Rev chuckled, "They're my cousin, Dakota. Dakota, these are," "No need," Dakota laughed, "We got pretty well acquainted on our way over here. Plus, they're just like you described in your emails. Although," Dakota turned to see Tech standing by Slam and pointed to him before saying, "I don't remember seeing him at the aerospace depot. Is that Tech?"
"Yeah, that's Tech." Rev nodded. Dakota smiled and nodded, leaning over and said in a loud whisper, "Well, you were right about one thing, he is a cute one." "What was that?" Tech asked. "Ah-ha-ha-ha, that's a good one, Dakota," Rev chuckled nervously, "Very funny." Dakota playfully elbowed Rev and gave him a wink before walking up to Tech and gave him a once-over, smiled and said with a nod, "I can see why he's so fond of you. You're a good soul."
Tech chuckled and said nervously, "Well, a lot of the neighbors around here would probably disagree with you." Dakota scoffed and rolled their eyes saying, "Let me guess, you met that stuck-up swan that lives down the way? Yeah, she's utterly unbearable and her husband is a loser and a complete creep."
"That's an understatement," a voice called. Everyone turned to see Rip walking through the front door, closing the door behind him, "You're better off just avoiding them. Trust me, you'll live a lot longer. Hey, Dakota; when did you get back?"
"Sometime yesterday," Dakota shrugged, "Oh, that reminds me!" Dakota reached into his tote bag and pulled out an aluminum tin and gave it to Harriet, "I figured you'd enjoy this." "What is it?" Rip asked. "Just something that a, uh… good friend of mine helped me whip up. I met him during my last trip abroad and he's a fantastic cook."
Tech sniffed the air as Harriet opened the tin and let out a happy chirp. "It's banana bread," Rev cheered, "I haven't had your homemade banana bread in years!"
"Thank you, Dakota." Harriet said with a smile before dashing into the kitchen to put the bread away in the pantry before dashing back out and asked, "Tech, could you give me a hand with putting away the meats?" Tech nodded and ran after Harriet as she zipped back into the kitchen. A few seconds later she popped her head out and said, "Oh, why don't the rest of you make yourselves at home while Tech and I put the food away? Rip, could you give us a hand in here? We'll be out in just a minute," before zipping back into the kitchen followed by Rip.
As Rip and the others settled down in the living room, Danger flopped into Ralph's recliner, making Rev tense up and let out a nervous squeak. "Duck, don't flop in my dad's chair," Rev squawked, "That recliner's not exactly cheap, you know."
"Eh, whatever," Duck said nonchalantly. Rev clenched his fists and growled in frustration. Rev turned to Dakota as he felt them put their hand on his shoulder and flash a friendly smile. Rev let out a sigh and grabbed his new outfit and headed up the stairs. "I'm going to put my new clothes in my room. Be right back." Rev said before disappearing around the corner.
"Take your time," Duck said as he picked up the remote and said, "What's on the idiot box?" before turning on the television. The next few minutes were spent discussing what to watch as the others waited for Tech, Rev and his family to rejoin them in the living room. As Harriet, Tech and Rip came out of the kitchen, the hollo-phone started ringing.
"Who's that, Ma?" Rev asked as he came down the stairs. "It's your father," Harriet said softly, "That's odd, he never calls in the middle of an 'office day'." Harriet answered the phone and activated the projector.
"Hello, dear," Harriet greeted as Ralph appeared on the hollo-feed, "Is something wrong?" "You're darn right something's wrong," Ralph squawked, his voice sounding panicked, "Turn on ABSN now! There's something you all have to see." Harriet turned to Danger and pointed to the television expectantly. "What?" Danger lisped. Rev and the others looked at Duck expectantly. After a few seconds of the gang's intense stares, Duck gave a sigh and said, "Fine, whatever," before changing the channel.
As the feed came back up on the screen, an older black necked swan appeared sitting on the set of some sort of talk show. He wore a fancy black Zoot suit with thin royal blue stripes, a red tie, and no shoes. His black head feathers had been slicked back with hair gel in a sort of coif. To his left sat a young peahen dressed in a lovely light pink pantsuit with matching toed dress shoes and jade jewelry, a necklace and a couple bracelets on her right hand.
"Welcome back to 'The View'," the peahen said, "I'm Jane Pea," "And I'm Terry Huddleston. Today we've found some very interesting, very juicy dirt to discuss about one of our town's most highly regarded families, the Runners."
"Oh crud, this can't be good." Rip groaned. Rev began trembling as he and the others watched the insanity unfold on live television. "After almost 200 years of espousing anti-predatory rhetoric, it seems the Runner family has adopted a policy of pure hypocrisy," Terry prattled, "A few days ago, my oldest son informed my wife that they're currently keeping a trained wilder in their home. A bit of an oxymoron, I know. Emphasis on 'moron.' After all, their family of all sentient beings should know better than to trust… wait for it Jane… a coyote!"
Tech slid down in his seat on the sofa as a series of shocked gasps sounded on the TV; his face looked genuinely mortified and his ears fell down limp behind his head. "You're kidding!? A coyote?" Jane said in sheer shock. "Yep; and get this," Terry had to take a moment to keep himself from laughing, "I did some digging, and apparently the reason the coyote is staying with them has to do with their eldest son's current condition. You remember hearing about that, right?"
"Oh, definitely, Terry," Jane nodded, "But what's the connection?" "Well, Jane," Terry continued, "Apparently they trust this coyote because he has 'medical knowledge' and has had 'training' as a 'field medic.' Yeah, like that practice has a lot of practical use these days."
"As if he even knows what a 'field medic' even is," Tech growled. Rev and the others just watched in pure horror as Terry continued his rant, talking about how the coyote, meaning Tech, was a menace and an obvious threat to the town's community and advising people to keep their children at home where it's safe, lock their doors and windows, and a bunch of other slanderous nonsense about the Runners and Tech.
It was obvious that Terry was trying to stir up panic in the locals, but at that moment the only one panicking was Rev, who was on the verge of an anxiety attack. Harriet helped Rev walk over to the sofa and eased him down next to Dakota as the others made room.
"You going to be okay, sweetheart?" Harriet asked worriedly. "No!" Rev snapped, "This is the Wolfe incident all over again! I hate these people, I really do." "This is just insane," Ace said with a scoff, "Where do these people get off? Telling you who you can and can't let stay over at your house; like it's any of their business."
"Their business or not," Ralph said in a loud, clearly frustrated voice, "This situation is out of control and we have to get ahead of it before half the town comes to try to kick down our door."
"What are you saying, Pa?" Rev asked. "What I'm trying to say is," Ralph paused and looked to Tech for a moment before turning back to Rev and Harriet and said, "I'm saying that I think it's time Tech went home."
"You're actually going to let your crazy neighbors drive me out of town?" Tech asked in a disgusted tone. "If it means keeping my home and my family safe," Ralph said crossing his arms, "Than yes, I am. And it's not just our safety I'm looking out for, Tech, but yours as well. If you never trust me about anything else, trust me here when I tell you that it truly is the best thing for everyone involved if you just go back to Acmetropolis, at least for a few days until this insanity blows over."
Tech looked at Rev expectantly, but Rev nervously turned away, staring at the television screen in pure horror and disgust as Terry started listing off all of the species coyotes were known to prey on. "As much as I hate to say it, Tech," Rev said with a sigh, "My dad is right."
"Rev?" Tech said in a soft whisper, shocked at Rev's words. "This town isn't exactly kind to folks like you," Rev explained, "Normally I'd be all for fighting the power, but this is far from what most would call normal circumstances." Tech's ears drooped a little; it was obvious that Tech was disappointed but he didn't say as much. He simply nodded and welcomed Rev's embrace as the young bird stood up and wrapped his arms around Tech, burying his face in Tech's shoulder.
"For what it's worth, Tech," Rev whispered, "I really don't want you to leave." Tech's face softened a little as he returned Rev's embrace and said, "I know." "Yeah, uh… excuse me," Dakota said before standing up and heading towards the front door. "Wait, Dakota, where are you going?" Harriet asked.
"Don't worry, Aunt Harriet, I'll be back in plenty of time for dinner." Dakota assured her, "I just remembered that I had an… errand to run. I'll be back in a few hours." And with that, Dakota left. The others turned to Rev in confusion; after a moment of silence, Rev just let out a bemused squeak and shrugged.
