Good Intentions

Part 2

Written by Zelda

 

 

Wildwing slowly stood from his seat by the weights.

                "What is it Tanya?" he asked.

                "Not sure..." she fumbled around under Zelda's scales for a moment, the dragon tossing her head irritably. Suddenly, there was an audible spark of electricity, and Tanya drew her hand back with the shock.

                Zelda nearly leapt into the air in surprise, stumbling back on the mat.

                The team looked up to see Dive had felt it as well.

                He was scratching at the back of his neck again.

                "Jeez! Something gave me a shock! What is that thing?" Suddenly, like a soldier, he snapped up standing with his arms at his sides, his gaze locked forward.

                Zelda simultaneously stood as well, her head up and frozen.

                The whole team was now on their feet, curious.

                "Dive?" Wing asked.

                Not responding, Nosedive turned to face the team, eyes scanning slowly over all of them.

                Tanya knelt again by the dragon's side, and reached for her neck.

                Zelda quickly leapt up, bringing her thick tail around and smacking Tanya powerfully in the face, knocking her clean away.

                She rolled up quickly, hurt only by the shock of the blow.

                Together, Dive and Zelda backed towards the wall of the room, away from their teammates.

                The others knew there was something terribly wrong.

                "Dive, what are you doing?" Mallory asked. "Zelda? Snap out of it!"

                The two didn't respond at all, except for their eyes, which conveyed a sense of complete panic, staring out into nothingness.

                "Dive? Zelda! Enough of this!" Wildwing joined her.

                But they still didn't respond. In a flash, they both darted forward, running right at the rest of the team! They parted and let the two run through the group, but they cycled around again like robots, and came strait for them!

                Wildwing suddenly stepped out and caught his brother, stopping him with a violent jolt. "Quit your games Dive!" he ordered.

                His younger brother suddenly wheeled about and punched him right in the lower jaw!

                More shocked than hurt, Wing lost his grip.

                Dive stayed with him, landing another blow to his shoulder.

                Tanya suddenly yelled out as Zelda leapt up onto her, looking to bite! Tanya was quick enough to get her thick shoulder pad in the way, and Zelda tore it right off.

                "Something's wrong!" Grin yelled. "She'd never bite us..." He was cut off in mid-thought as Dive suddenly kicked him in the back of his knees, sending him tumbling to the floor.

                "Restrain them both!" Wildwing ordered, again grabbing at his brother.

                This time, Dive simply overpowered his grip, tearing out of it and lunging for Mallory.

                She wasn't able to react quickly enough, and they both went to the floor.

                Grin had sprung back up by this time, and grabbed the dragon easily with both hands, holding all of her limbs in place.

                "Enough of this friend!" he pleaded with her.

                Her eyes cried out with fear. Suddenly she wheeled her head down and sunk her teeth right into his wrist!

                Yelling in pain, Grin had no choice but to let go.

                Wildwing was busy trying to pull Dive out of punching distance from Mallory.

                "Take them down now!" he yelled out, frustrated.

                Tanya fumbled with her Omnitool and popped out a small syringe, running up and emptying it into Dive's arm.

                The Duck wheeled around and nearly kicked her in the gut.

                Duke slid in-between the crowd, and thunked Zelda dully on the skull with the blunt of his sabre blade.

                The dragon howled and stumbled dumbly for a few seconds before she toppled, unconscious, on the floor.

                "Believe me kid, that hurt me more than it hurt you." the Duck apologized, kneeling beside her on the ground.

                Although sedated, Dive still wasn't approachable. Like an angry, darted rhino, he lashed out at anyone who came too close, stumbling back into a corner of the Rec. Room.

                "Easy Dive..." Wildwing tried to calm him. "You'll be okay..."

                The young Duck didn't seem to hear, still swinging out with the last of his strength. But he stared up at his brother, panicked and unblinking.

                "What's gotten into them?" Tanya asked herself, keeping her distance.

                Slowly, unwillingly, Nosedive buckled under the sedative, crumpling in the corner and letting his head finally loll on his elbows, folded defensively.

                Wildwing looked at him in amazement for a few seconds. "Let's get them to the Medicom... something real bad is up."

 

                "DANG!" Siege threw down his keypad, letting it slam the console. "Game over!"

                Dragaunus stood musing, thumbing his own controller thoughtfully while rubbing his chin with the other hand. "You know... I think that went well..."

                "What do you mean?" Siege interrupted him. "Our 'players' are down for the count! It's only a matter of time before they hook 'em up to that machine and find us out!"         

                "It's a good thing they stopped you." Wraith chimed in from the background. "Or else those chips would have drained their energy."

                "Exactly what I was thinking." Dragaunus spoke broodingly. "The only problem with these chips is that they wear out fast... Zelda's going to be tough to work with despite her high metabolism... she'll be the first to be drained, yet the fasted to recharge... interesting...."

                "Hello? Anyone home up there?" Seige snarled. "Now that they're knocked out, the other Ducks'll find those chips!"

                "And what if they do?" Draguanus asked. "Those chips can't be simply removed, not as long as we keep them activated. As long as those two maintain the energy to keep those chips running, they can't be disabled." he smiled deviously. "Those fowl actually did me a favor, didn't remember about the drainage factor..."

                Siege was still angry. He obviously wanted to do some punishment at the moment.

                "Now that we have time to strategize My Lord..." Wraith began. "I suggest we take it."

                "You have a plan Wraith?" Dragaunus looked over his shoulder doubtfully.

                "I think we can come up with an effective strategy by looking at the data feedout."

                "Awww man, that'll take ages!" Siege whined.

                "Oh shut up." Dragaunus snapped. "We've got the time. Get Chameleon in here, he can finally be useful today." He tore a long sheet from the console printer, and started to read it over.

 

                Tanya prodded gently under Zelda's scales, a microscope lens over her eye like a monocle.                Wildwing looked over her shoulder, curious and nervous.

                Tanya pulled back and looked up. "Do you mind?" she sniffed.

                Wildwing backed off sheepishly. "Sorry..." he said. "I just wanna know what's going on."

                "I toldja Wing..." she started, leaning back over the dragon as she lay on an examination table. "I saw something weird in here before they both went... well, wacko."

                "I bet Dive's got the same thing." Duke thought.

                "But what is it? A spell? Some kind of device?" Mallory asked.

                "Whatever it is, I definitely smell a Saurian behind this." Duke growled.

                Grin stood off in a corner by himself, eyes closed in thought.

                "Here!" Tanya suddenly piped up. "I found it!" she fiddled with her lens for a moment, and an image of what she saw popped onto one of the Medicom console's screens. It was clear, a computer chip lodged right into the back of the dragon's neck. Tanya rolled her wheeled chair over to Nosedive's bed, and looked in the same place. "Here too, the same thing!" Nosedive's chip popped up on an adjacent screen.

                "Well I'll be..." Mallory narrowed her eyes... "It's a bioenergy chip!"

                "A what?" Duke looked at her. "You recognize these things?"

                "All too well." she frowned. "The Saurians used these chips in the slave camps, for a short time, during the invasion. We got a lot of these in the first camps we liberated."

                "What are they?" Wildwing asked.

                "Normally they were just supposed to take down information about their wearers. Those lizards used the data they gathered to keep their slaves just off of the brink of death from exhaustion, with all the work they did." she shook her head.

                "But these aren't normal... they're not just taking information." Wildwing pressed.

                "I haven't seen anything like this before... " Mallory shook her head.

                "But what does that matter?" Duke broke in. "We've found the chips, let's just pull 'em out."

                "No!" Mallory said quickly. "That was one of the Force's biggest mistakes early in the liberation. The chips run off of their wearer's bioenergy, to simply pull them out is deadly!"

                "Big problem..." Tanya thought, then went back to Zelda's side. "But we've got to do something... maybe the programming..."

                "Tanya." Grin spoke slowly. "Those chips just control their bodies, right?"

                "It seems that way." she looked up.

                "Then it makes sense..." he mumbled, and closed his eyes again.

                "What is it Grin?" Wildwing asked.

                "The chips control their bodies, so they were directed to fight against us." he said. "But their eyes... they can still think for themselves."

                "That's why they looked so afraid... they didn't want to attack us, of course!" Tanya nodded.

                "We don't have much time." Wildwing stood. "Tanya, we need a full analysis of these two chips. Mallory can help you out. Grin, try and get to Zelda. I don't know how but she may be able to help. Duke, you're with me. We'll try and find the Raptor, see what Dragaunus wants. And we'll all have to hurry, we can only sedate those two so much."

                "Alright then." Duke said, heading for the door. "Let's go."

 

                "I've said it before Tanya, machines and I don't get along." Mallory squinted through a microscope.

                Tanya pushed her gently aside. "I can handle this part, but you're the only one who's seen these chips in action. I'll need your help in taking them out."

                "We can't just pull them out." she repeated. "Bioenergy, what I understand of it, runs like a circuit."

                "Right." Tanya nodded, focusing the lens.

                "So when the Forces liberated the first camps, they didn't realize this. Only sparse troops, you know." she said darkly. "But they pulled the chips right out... fatal."

                "Disconnected the circuit." Tanya agreed. "We won't make that mistake. I've seen something like these, back on Puckworld. Medical technology. But this is Saurian, it's different...  in a way."

                "And what about being able to control their bodies?"

                "That... well that's what has really got me." Tanya leaned back and shook her head. "I can't find anything in here that could do that... rather..." she corrected herself. "There's the technology to channel a command like that, but nothing to generate it."

                "Come again?" Mallory asked.

                Tanya smiled a bit. "Sorry. I mean that there's nothing in this chip that could control them like that. There's technology to allow for that, but no... battery."

                "I think I get it." Mallory frowned. "So what's causing it?"

                "Something else." Tanya muttered, leaning back into the microscope. "Maybe a remote control... I'll have to start checking for signals."

                Mallory shook her head and looked over at her two teammates.

 

                Grin walked from the overhanging tunnel into the incredible space of the Ready Room, with a familiar ease. But there was nothing carefree about the look on his face. He approached as Wildwing and Duke looked over at him from Drake 1's console.

                "No luck?" his leader asked.

                Grin shook his head. "I am afraid not. Zelda's unreachable when she's unconscious, even in telepathy."

                "Great move on my part." Duke sighed.

                "You did what you had to." Wildwing looked up at him from his chair. "Things were crazy back there."

                "Guess they were." Duke nodded. "I didn't know what got into them."

                "And we still don't." Grin added. "Any word from Tanya and Mallory? They would be able to enlighten us on our situation."

                "Not yet." Wildwing tapped at the console. "And as usual, Dragaunus has decided to go into a shell, for now. No traces of teleportation energy anywhere." He leaned over and pulled a few cords from a portal in the console, plugging them into the Mask. He closed his eyes and pressed his hands the side of his head, scanning.

                Duke looked up at Grin. "So you really think those two can still think freely?"

                "They must be able to. I could feel." he nodded. "As soon as they wake up, we'll be able to get some details from them, especially Zelda. I fear she will not remember much, but it will help."

                Suddenly, their coms crackled. Tanya's face appeared on their vid-links.

                "Speak of the devil..." Duke commented.

                Tanya gave him a weird face. "If you guys aren't busy, you might wanna come down." she started. "I think Zel's starting to wake up."

                "Well that's good news!" Duke patted Grin's shoulder.

                "Wait up for me a sec." Wildwing said. "I'm almost finished with this scan."

                "Negative." Tanya cut in. "She's waking up fast, and she's not a happy camper down here."

                The three Ducks looked at each other quickly. Wildwing waved the two off, nodding, and they ran out of the Ready Room.

 

                Mallory strained to pull the leather strap down. Who thought that something so small could have so much strength! But then again, she was being controlled. She just needed to get the strap pulled down far enough, just so she could secure it into the buckle. It was a matter of inches, but the dragon was pushing back, her claws already starting to shear through the leather.

                "Keep at it!" Tanya yelled from the other side of the table, trying to secure Zelda's head.

                Mallory wasn't jealous.

                A leather strap looped her jaw, and Zelda thrashed about on the table, snorting angrily.

                The door hissed as it opened, and Duke and Grin game running inside.

                "Little help here!" Mallory looked up for only a second, to see Duke at her side.

                He grabbed the strap and helped her to pull, and their combined effort finally worked.

                Mallory buckled the strap down and hoped that the leather would hold.

                Zelda lashed in a greater frenzy, now nearly crushed by the strap.

                Grin and Tanya pulled her head down flat against the table, but she still flopped her neck about angrily.

                Standing back, Mallory saw Zelda as if she were straight out of a Frankenstein movie, every limb being roped down.

                "She woke up quick..." Duke wiped his forehead.

                "Reptile biology." Tanya explained. "Sedating them is tough enough, but they can regain consciousness in a snap."

                "So I see." Mallory nodded. "Now what? Those straps are gonna start to hurt soon."

                "We can sedate her now, more safe than a clunk on the head..." Tanya walked over for a cabinet.

                "Just a moment." Grin held up a hand. "Now that she's conscious again, perhaps we can get some answers." He sat down in a chair next to her bed, and put a reassuring hand over her snout.

                She snorted him away, and would have bitten him if she had the ability.

                Unphased, Grin folded his arms and closed his eyes.

 

                She was there immediately, as if she had been searching for him. And she was frantic, he could feel that too.

                "Grin! Are you there?" she nearly cried out in his mind.

                The Duck was alarmed by her tone. "Easy Zel, I am here. You've finally woken up, I see." he said calmly, trying to reassure her.

                "Grin, what's happening to me?" she demanded, her panic not decreasing. "I can't feel anything, my body!"

                "Please Zelda, take it easy!" he said. "You and Nosedive had computer chips planted on you, and now the Saurians can control your bodies."

                "But... but I can't feel anything! What's happening to me!?" she repeated.

                Grin was curious. "You mean, you can't feel what's happening to you now? You can't see anything?"

                "No!" Zelda answered. "Nothing!"

                "Zelda, trust us." he told her. "We're trying to fix things. Draguanus is using you both as weapons against us. The only thing you can do now is try and help figure out what's wrong."

                "But how?"

                "Do you remember when that itching on your neck started, anything unusual?"

                "No, it was a gradual thing." Zelda sounded as if she were trying to stay calm. Maybe contact with him was helping. "Except when Wraith cast that weird spell back in the depot... nothing..."

                "What spell?" Grin asked.

                "In the depot." Zelda repeated, trying to remember. "I think he got Dive too, before, he made some comment about that..."

                "But what was the spell?"

                "I don't know, it didn't do anything to us." Zelda answered. "It was just a red light, Wraith looked surprised when nothing happened."

                Grin's concentration nearly broke as someone shook his shoulder. Something must be wrong. He struggled to maintain his link with her.

                "What's going on?" Zelda knew he was fading out.

                "Something's wrong Zelda, you must be breaking out of your restraints..."

                "What?"

                "Listen Zelda, you keep trying to remember. I'll be back..." Grin was forced to open his eyes as he was nearly shoved off his chair! He looked up to find the dragoness looming over him, snarling, eyes still wide with fear. Grin shoved himself back just as Zelda crashed to the ground. The Ducks encircled her, unsure of what to do.

                "NOW can we sedate her?" Tanya asked.

                "DuCaine knows..." Duke started. "It's fine by me!" But he suddenly cried out and was thrown to the floor.

                Nosedive stood behind him, fully awake!

                "When did he wake up?!" Mallory yelled, spinning around.

                Dive got in another kick to Duke before he was tackled away.

                Zelda pounced for Tanya as she went to the cabinet, and the Duck was just able to dodge her before she slammed into the wall.

                "Try and confuse them!" Mallory snarled, still trying to hold Nosedive down. His strength was incredible! "If the Saurians are controlling them, they aren't used to it yet!"

                Duke was up with her by now, and helped hold down Dive's arms.

                Grin caught Zelda again, one hand over her snout. He had to hold her firmly to keep her from moving, too firmly. He hoped that he wasn't hurting her, but she didn't seem to notice at all.

                The door hissed and opened again, and Wildwing hurried in. He was quick to assess the situation.

                "We need to keep them awake, put them in the brig!" he ordered.

                It took both Mallory and Duke to contain Nosedive, each taking an arm.

                Wildwing grabbed his kicking feet, and they hefted him out of the infirmary.

                Tanya grabbed Zelda's squirming tail, and she and Grin followed quickly.

                "Wing's right." she said as they walked with her. "I don't think we have to worry about keeping Dive under, but it's risky to sedate her too much."

                "And we need her help." Grin nodded. "They've been put in total sensory deprivation, Zelda had no idea what was happening to her. They both must be terrified, at least I can talk with her."

                They both arrived in the brig to find Dive being shoved into a cell, and Zelda following him seconds later.

                Together, they sprung for the door, and the team had to shove it shut against them. The two then began slamming themselves against the bars, again and again.

                "This has to stop, they'll hurt themselves!" Mallory said.

                "Perhaps bodily, but they can't feel it." Grin shook his head. "Zelda's been in the dark ever since the chip took over."

                The team watched as the two slowly gave up at the bars.

                "Maybe the Saurians are learning." Tanya growled.

                Wildwing suddenly had an idea, and approached the two.

                "I don't know what you Saurians have planned, but it's not going to work!" he yelled at them. "It's just a matter of canceling out those chips, and you're finished!"

                Nosedive stepped forward, and actually began to speak! It was twisted speech, emotionless, as if his vocal cords were being operated by a puppeteer. "Foolish Ducks..." he stammered blankly. "You featherbrains have no idea. Your friends are done for. They are ours now."

                "Let them go Dragaunus!"

                "I thought you said you had that figured out... hahahah."

                "Your little game is useless, you can't do anything to us in here."

                "Maybe not to you..." Dive clapped his beak shut.

                Slowly, the two in the cell turned, and in one rush they charged each other!

                "This is trouble..." Tanya breathed.

                The two made short work of each other. Zelda's claws sheared right into his armor, Dive slammed her back with his fists.

                Wildwing's eyes widened. "You're crazy Dragaunus, you'll kill them! And then what?"

                The two suddenly snapped to a halt, standing at attention. Perhaps it had worked!

                Nosedive turned to face his brother, and opened his beak mechanically again. "Heh heh..." he muttered blankly. "How shortsighted you are..."

                Zelda turned as well. "Morons." she quipped. "That's all we wanted to do."

                With sickening uniformity, the two turned back to each other, and resumed their fighting.

                "This is real trouble." Tanya said. "They'll really hurt each other, we've got to separate them!"

                "But how?" Duke asked. "If we go in there, they'll both rip us apart!"

                Wildwing took just a second to thing things over.

                "Tanya, do you have any sedative on you?" he asked.

                She pulled a syringe out of her pocket and nodded.

                Wildwing looked at the two and sighed. "We'll sedate Dive, I think we can handle Zelda if she's awake. "Mallory and I will go in first, and distract them. Then Duke and Grin can help us contain them, and Tanya'll be the last step."

                "Sounds good to me." Mallory nodded. "Especially when we don't have that much time." She was right, the two were starting to draw blood.

                Wildwing opened the brig door, which barely got the attention of the fighting pair. He and Mallory slipped in and split up, he drawing behind his brother and Mallory sneaking in with Zelda. "Now!" Wildwing called, and they tried to pull the pair apart.

                Zelda howled and snapped at Mallory's wrist, and she dropped her to the floor. The dragon bolted for the open door, but was caught by the tail in Grin's hand.

                He lifted her cleanly off the floor, holding her at a safe distance as she scrabbled angrily.

                "I am sorry, little friend." he sighed, cringing in case she did manage to land her claws somewhere in him. He nodded to Mallory, who went over to help Duke and Wildwing with Nosedive, who was being much less cooperative.

                It didn't take much for the kid to struggle out of his older brother's grip.

                Duke tackled him squarely, knocking him against the bars of the brig cell.

                Dive headbutted him angrily, and the older Duck saw stars and staggered backwards.

                "Hang on guys!" Tanya's hand slipped between the bars, and she emptied a syringe into Dive's shoulder. He wheeled around and punched at her, and Tanya was barely able to avoid him. "Whoa! Easy kid!"

                Nosedive was, again, slow to succumb to the effects of the sedative. He angrily swiped at anyone he could get at, landing most of the punches on his brother, who couldn't dodge him in the small cell. Running his energy reserves until the last minute, he nearly collapsed into Wildwing's arms.

                "Sheesh, I'm getting tired of this." Wing hoisted him up. "Grin, you got Zelda?"

                "I believe that she is sufficiently restrained." Grin nodded, still holding the squirming lizard by the tail.

                Wildwing set his brother down gently and stepped out of the cell, Mallory and a rather starstruck Duke following him. "We should separate them, for now anyway."

                Grin carried Zelda into another cell, tossing her gently into the corner.

                She snarled, spun, and charged, hitting against the door of the cell just as the others were able to slam it shut. Her snout got stuck, and she grew even more angry trying to get it out.

                The others finally had a moment to relax.

                "Man, these two are a piece of work." Mallory frowned.

                "You're telling me." Duke nodded, rubbing his head.

                Suddenly, Zelda quieted, and stopped slamming herself against the bars. She paced backwards, into the middle of the cell, and sat placidly.

                Wildwing cocked his head and frowned. "Don't tell me you're giving up already Draguanus."

                The dragon didn't respond, and her facial expression didn't change.

                Wildwing crossed his arms. "Something's up." He turned and waved the others towards the door.

                Mallory hesitated. "Should we just leave them here?"

                "They're not the ones who can break out." Duke smirked a bit. "They'll be fine for a moment."

                The five Ducks stepped out into the corridor, and let the brig door hiss closed behind them.

                "Sorry about that." Wildwing nodded. "I didn't want them to hear us."

                Grin nodded and pressed a few fingers to the side of his head, looking off in distraction.

                "Well, now what?" Duke asked.

                "What did you manage to find out about those chips Tanya?" Wildwing turned to her.

                She ran a hand through her hair and tried to find some words. "It's weird." she explained. "The chips, they're not running by themselves."

                "They were designed just to take data on the energy use of their wearers." Mallory nodded. "By themselves, they can't control people."

                "So it's gotta be something else, some kind of remote." Tanya said.

                "Which means Draguanus is the root of the problem." Wildwing nodded.

                "As he always is." Duke sighed.

                Grin frowned and blinked. "I think I know why Zelda has calmed down." he started.

                The others turned to him.

                "It is only a theory..." he started. "I've been having a little conversation with Zelda..." he closed his eyes again. "Her feeling came back to her, during the last of the fight."

                "What?" Duke asked.

                Grin was still trying to concentrate. "She's lost it quickly again... but for a moment there..."

                "That's unusual..." Tanya rubbed her beak in deep thought. "It means the chips must have weakened, maybe a malfunction..."

                "Or maybe not." Mallory frowned. "Those chips ran off of the bioenergy of the wearers."

                "So if the wearers get tired..." Tanya caught on. "The chips would lose their effect!"

                "Well that solves our problem!" Duke grinned. "We just tucker the kids out, and then yank the chips!"         

                "Nothing's ever that easy." Tanya frowned. "And I'm afraid this isn't an exception. Bioenergy isn't just the energy to move, it controls everything, even involuntary muscle, like the heart. We drain them of everything, we kill them both."

                "And if we can't drain their energy, we can't remove the chips." Wildwing sighed.

                Tanya was still thinking. "But it is a start." she said. "It's a good idea in principle... and it might offer us a way to keep those two under control."

                "Yeah, we've just gotta figure out a way to keep those two busy..." Wildwing nodded.

                Duke grinned, a rather devilish idea hitting him. "I think I know a way."

 

                "I'm sick a bein' patient!" Siege snarled angrily. "Why do we always gotta wait?!"

                "I don't like it any more than you do." The attitude of his henchman was beginning to grate on the calmer Draguanus. "That's the way it is. At least we still have a pair of eyes and ears working for us."

                Siege was not appeased with this answer. "When this dumb kid wakes up, swear---" he broke off and stormed away from the console, leaving his keypad dangling.

                Curious, Chameleon picked it up and fiddled absently with it.

                Draguanus turned away from his own controller and returned to thinking. After a few moments, he let out a chuckle and sat in his throne. "Siege fails to appreciate the hunt, I believe." he mused aloud. "We have put the Ducks in quite a bind with this situation."

                "You know Siege-y!" Chameleon cooed like an overprotective mother. "Always out wanting to kill things, the little sweetie!"

                "And I suppose that is why he isn't pleased with our current strategy." Draguanus nodded back. "We can't simply kill them, what a waste of possibilities. And besides, how ironic it would be if the Ducks were forced to do the job for us!"

                "How's that boss?"

                "Think about it." he leaned back. "There is no way the Ducks can remove those chips. It's a walking life sentence. Those two are now forever locked into our control, and the Ducks can't just can't keep them running on the edge of exhaustion forever. Their only freedom will come through death." A sickening sneer crept across his face. "Will they have mercy on those two lost souls?"

 

 

To be continued....