Stone Cold

Written by Zelda

 

                The Aerowing shot over the city at night, parting through the clouds.

                "This is sure a plush ship you got here." Lexington said, searching through the control panels with an awe and curiosity.

                "More importantly, our sensors can pick up any sign of those Saurians, should they decide to show themselves." Wildwing smiled.

                "It's a good thing we left Bronx, Elisa and Hudson behind to guard the others." Brooklyn said.

                "Yeah, Dragaunus is a real snake. You never know where he'll pop up. He may attack while we're gone." Duke agreed. Duke and Brooklyn looked at each other curiously.

                "Nahhhh." They said in unison, shrugged, and turned away. Suddenly, an alarm rang and buttons flashed on the panels.

                "What's this?" Goliath asked.

                "Drake One's picking up teleportation energy, right here in the city!" Tanya said.

                "Where?" asked Angela.

                "Right near Central Park." Tanya replied.

                "Hang on to your socks kiddies!" yelled Nosedive, as the Aerowing shot off. "We going for a little ride!"

 

                The trees blew aside as the Aerowing landed in a wide field space in the Park.

                "On your toes, team." Wildwing advised. "They're around here somewhere...." Suddenly, the ship rocked with several explosions.

                "I think they just found us!" Broadway cried.

                "Well, THERE goes our element of surprise!" Nosedive snarled, perching himself at the edge of the hatch.

                "See if you can hold off their fire, we'll get to them!" Goliath roared. He draped a wing over his head and charged out of the hatch with the rest of his kind. Wildwing drew his shield and stood in the opening, with the others at the sides, firing in the direction the blasts were coming from. It must have worked, because soon the firing stopped. The Gargoyles had reached them! The Ducks ran out of the Aerowing to help. Although the Saurians were outnumbered by the Gargoyles, the hunter drones they had brought with them weren't. There must have been about fifteen of them! Wildwing and the team charged for the Saurians, while the Gargoyles shifted over to the drones.

                "These guys are as tough as the Steel Clan!" Lexington snarled, leaping in all directions to avoid laser blasts. Broadway climbed up a tree and leapt down on a drone, crushing it. But two others turned on him. Broadway screamed as he felt a hot blast burning through the flesh on his shoulder. He bent over in pain, sweeping the ground with his tail and knocking over his assailant. Mallory snapped the other one in half with a kick to the back, and stooped over to help Broadway up.

                "You okay?" she asked.

                "I'll be fine!" Broadway snorted, and pulled away. As the drones were being picked off one by one, the battle calmed a bit. Those who had defeated their enemies stooped over for a second to catch their breath, then turned to help another. Finally, all the drones had been destroyed. The Ducks and Gargoyles regrouped together, surrounding the four Saurians. They stared wrathfully at each other through the wavering smoke of the destroyed drones.

                "It's over Dragaunus." Wildwing snarled. "Set our friends right and we'll let you go."

                "That's quite generous of you Wildwing." grinned Dragaunus. "But I'll have to turn you down. You see, this is hardly over....." he began. Suddenly, the skies overhead rang with animal screams, and five dark shadows swooped down, landing in a circle around the Saurians. They snarled and roared.

                "What?" Goliath muttered. "How did they..."

                "That's right!" Dragaunus laughed. "It isn't over yet. And you KNOW how I hate to leave before the fun ends!" The five raised their wings and howled, and suddenly the circle leapt out.

 

                Wildwing felt something pressing into his armor with incredible pressure. The metal screeched as it was punctured and crumpled. He was lifted up off of the ground, whirled around, and slammed down on his head. Staggering up, he saw Candy's outline in the city streetlamps.

                "Candy....calm down." he started, backing away. Candy screamed at him, eyes burning red. His back thunked against the edge of a tree trunk. In panic, Wildwing whirled around and scrambled up into the leaves. Candy dug her claws into the bark and followed him. Wildwing sprung off of a branch and fell, landing directly on top of Wraith, who was struggling with Lexington below.

                "Set them normal Wraith, or else...!" Wildwing started. Suddenly, he was lifted up by the shoulders and thrown away. Lexington landed beside him seconds later.

                "Or else what?" grinned Wraith, getting up slowly. Wildwing suddenly ducked as another shadow swooped over him. He uncoiled and looked to see Lindsay chasing Tanya and Brooklyn around. Tanya separated and ran into the field, while Brooklyn bounded up a tree. Lindsay swooped into the leaves with him. The tree shook and snapped, and Lindsay fell to the ground. She howled and ran off, trying to leap up high enough to glide after Tanya. Brooklyn leapt out of the tree and soared over, crashing into her and pinning her to the ground. Lindsay screamed as she was dealt a raking blow across the face. Brooklyn raised his claws again, when something slammed into him, knocking him a few feet away. Grin lay still on the ground as Brooklyn got up beside him. Matt snarled and bounded over Grin's body, leaping up and coming down on Brooklyn. He felt the claws tearing through the flesh on his shoulders and bit down on one of Matt's feet. Matt howled in fury and limped off. Brooklyn stumbled up to find Duke beside him, sword drawn and ready. Slowly, Lindsay and Matt paced around them.

 

                Dragaunus watched, rubbing his chin in amusement. Wraith hobbled up beside him and grinned. Chameleon tugged at his Lord's robes. Dragaunus looked down, irritated.

                "So..." Chameleon said, munching on a tub of popcorn. "You liking the show?" Dragaunus took another tub of popcorn and began to eat. He swept his tail across the grass and came up with dew-diluted blood on it.

                "Two claws up." he grinned back. The henchmen looked around. "But, I say it's time we get going."

                "Awww, can't we stay?" Siege whined.

                "Better safe than sorry Siege." Wraith nodded. Quickly, they disappeared in a great green shadow.

 

                The fact that the five were outnumbered was slowly beginning to show again, bedraggled and tired, the Ducks and Gargoyles regrouped. The five regrouped as well, slowly. Matt was still limping. Zelda remained at the head, scales bristling. She obviously wanted another shot at her enemies. They all did. But they seemed irritated. Freefall nipped at Zelda's tail. Zelda spun around and hissed at him. Candy hissed back at Zelda. Lindsay hissed at Candy, and Matt hissed at Zelda. They started turning away from the Ducks and Gargoyles, and towards each other. They howled and screamed at each other.

                "What's....happening?" Mallory asked.

                "They're frustrated with the progress they've had so far." Angela said slowly, as if she were working it out. Suddenly, Matt leapt on top of Zelda, who screamed and rolled over. Freefall spun around and snarled, joining in by roping his tail around Zelda's leg and holding her fast. Candy leapt into the tussle, followed by Lindsay. Angela gasped. "They're blaming it on Zelda." she said. "They though she could lead them because she sorta taught them to fly." Wildwing stepped forward, but Goliath held him back, knowing better than to get tangled up in this. "Now, if Zelda wants to retain her lead, she'll have to win it back....if she lives." Angela finished.

 

                The description of the fight was not inaccurate. Wings and tails whipped and lashed. Clods of dirt and grass were flung up as those at the bottom of the pile tried to fight out. Zelda finally tore out and rolled, leaving a trail of red on the grass. She limped away from the group, who quickly realized she wasn't there, untangled, and leapt upon her again like a pack of velociraptors. Zelda clawed her way out of the group quickly, no longer trying to reason. She screamed at them and flailed her blood-soaked wings. She leapt at them and tore through, but the four worked against her as a collective force.

                "We have to help her, they'll kill her!" Wildwing argued. He quickly fired a few pucks into the tussle, which brought screams and disorder. The bedraggled four quickly writhed and thrashed, and resumed the fighting. Thunder boomed across the sky, and wind ripped across the field. Wildwing shot a few more pucks to tell the five he meant business. But they ignored him! He snarled and waved to Mallory. She raised her launcher and fired a few glancing shots with him. Finally, the five untangled and slowly began to realize they were being attacked. Unable to fight back from such a distance, they began to retreat. One by one, they used the updrafts of the wind to lift them directly off of the ground and away. Neither the Ducks nor the Gargoyles would pursue them as they rose screaming into the night. But Zelda was left on the ground, still hissing and snorting wildly.

                "She must be hurt." said Goliath, stepping forwards slowly. Zelda still thrashed and rolled over, bleeding from several places. The others slowly moved forwards to help her. She turned and hissed at them.

                "Easy, easy Zelda." Tanya said gently. But Zelda wouldn't let anyone get within a 3 yard radius of her.

                "She is hurt. We've gotta get her help." Wildwing said.

                "Yea, but how? She'll tear us in two." said Lex.

                "Not yet." Tanya said. She popped a dart out of her Omnitool. "Basic animal tranquilizer." She aimed and threw the dart by hand. It hit Zelda in the side, upon which she roared and thrashed about even more. But slowly, she began to tire, until she finally lay still on the ground. Wildwing picked her bloodsoaked form up, and followed the rest of the team as they headed back onto the Aerowing.

 

                Wildwing breathed a heavy sigh of relief, laying Zelda down in a corner on the floor. As he slumped back, he noticed how he ached. Post-battle slump, he called it. Adrenaline faded away quickly, with pain of injury taking its place.

                "Well, at least those injuries'll keep them on the bench for a good few days." Duke said, nursing a large bruise on his forehead. Lexington turned.

                "You kidding?" he asked. "Those four'll be flying tomorrow. Zelda, two days tops." The Ducks cocked heads and raised eyebrows in alarm.

                "Our wounds heal during the day." Goliath explained.                

                "Great. Ours won't." Grin said, still having to lean on the wall for support.

                "Umm, aren't we forgetting someone?" Brooklyn said slowly.

                "Bronx and Hudson and Elisa!" Goliath gasped. Nosedive leapt into the Aerowing controls. There was no time to waste.

 

                The castle was empty as a ghost from the outside, and all appeared quiet. The Ducks and Gargoyles lowered themselves from the ship, onto the ledge of a turret. The Aerowing landed on autopilot on the roof of a building nearby. Wildwing had Zelda in his arms.

                "Looks quiet." Duke said.

                "Believe me it isn't." Brooklyn assured him. They entered the tower quietly from a small door.

 

                Inside, it was dark and still. The group looked around slowly. Suddenly, something whimpered softly in a corner. Mallory aimed her launcher at it, but Lex grabbed her arm, knowing better. He leapt off into the darkness.

                "Bronx? Easy boy, we're here." he said. Soon he and Bronx reemerged. Bronx had a huge scratch across his flank.

                "Bronx, where are Elisa and Hudson?" Goliath asked quickly. Bronx whined and was about to react further, when the eerie silence was shattered by a loud scream. Something fell and landed with a thud on the floor, several feet away from the group, and lay still. Bronx shot out instinctively at it. It was Hudson. But as Bronx neared him, something loomed out of the shadows and struck him away. Lindsay snarled and stood in front of Hudson. Over her, the three others perched high in the rafters. The Ducks backed away carefully. But the Gargoyles seemed distracted.

                "We're going to have to postpone this." Goliath sighed, pointing outside. The dawn was coming. As the Ducks watched, the Gargoyles froze in the positions they were in. The four realized it too, striking terrifying poses before they froze into cold stone. Wildwing suddenly buckled over, having Zelda turn to stone in his arms. He quickly lay the bent form on the floor as gently as he could manage.

                "Here we go again." Nosedive muttered.

 

                Nosedive ran a hand through his blonde hair and stepped up to the sharp figure in the black suit in front of him.

                "Yo... uh, Owen dude!" he called. The man turned around with his usual sharp face.

                "You called Mr. Flashblade?" he asked.

                "Yeah, look, we need two more of those electric cage thingies, if you got a couple of spares..." he started. Owen sighed.

                "Although I wouldn't authorize such a thing myself, I know that Mr. Xanatos values those Gargoyles. There are two more in the storerooms. And I'll up the electric voltage in those bars this time." Nosedive grinned.

                "Wow, thanks a bunch Owen man!" he yelled, running off to tell the others that he had been successful in his task of getting the cages again.

                "That's a 10-4 Wing!" he called, running back to the team.

                "Great job little Bro! Now, we've got to get these guys into their cages."

                "Put Zelda in a separate one. I'm sure the others wouldn't be too thrilled to be reunited with her at night." Mallory remained. Wildwing nodded.

                "I've got a bit of an idea we might be able to base our plan on, but we need to think."

                "Well, we've got plenty of time." Grin said, pointing at the sun.

 

                Goliath yawned/howled as he awoke. Instantly he started up. What about Hudson? Suddenly he was steadied.

                "Easy easy, Hudson's okay and the five are secured." Tanya said. He rubbed his arms and looked about. The other Ducks seemed surprised at how quickly the Gargoyles had recovered from their fight the night before. Hudson stood up and rubbed his head.

                "Oye... are we all still in one piece?"

                "We are." Goliath said. Brooklyn, Lexington, and Angela were standing over with the other Ducks, by the cages. Goliath looked up to see four faces scream angrily back at him. He frowned. Zelda herself seemed not too much worse for the wear. She was already daring the voltage of the bars, to try and swipe at the comrades who had turned on her.

                "Hmph." Brooklyn said. "So, you Ducks come up with a plan?"

                "You better believe we did. But we'll need the knowledge of your species to, you know, sort of round it out." Duke said.

                "And what did you have in mind?" Broadway asked.

                "Here." Wildwing beckoned, leading them into another room where the five couldn't hear. "We've got an idea. The five are looking for another leader right?" Wildwing asked. Angela nodded.

                "They should. We don't like being unorganized." she offered.

                "So one of you could go in and act as a new leader, you know." Wildwing said.

                "There is a downside though." cautioned Mallory.

                "Yeah, having to deal with Zelda." Lex determined.

                "She's still a little sore, but I'm sure you wouldn't want a fight with her." Wildwing agreed.

                "Regardless, it's a pretty decent plan." Goliath said. "Maybe we should try it, and I'll volunteer.

                "No, Goliath wait a second." Brooklyn frowned. "I want to go instead. You have to stay here and lead us, I can take care of myself."

                "Mmm, he is thinkin' lad." Hudson said. "And he is your second in command." Goliath thought.

                "Alright Brooklyn, you may go. But we have to plan how we're going to do this."

                "Maybe we'll put him in with the four first, and Zelda will back down." Tanya said.

                "Good thinking." Duke added.

                "We have to do it carefully... they might get out while the cage is open." Broadway thought. The Ducks took out their launchers, already having the problem covered.

                "Come on." Goliath waved. They stepped back into the room.

                "Act like Brooklyn is our enemy!" Mallory whispered. The Gargoyles hissed at him, and the Ducks threatened loudly to fire on him if he didn't surrender. Finally, Goliath tackled his second in command, and hauled him up.

                "Think you're gettin' carried away with the part?" Brooklyn grunted, as both of his wrists were held behind his back. Goliath smiled, and signaled to the others.

                "Open the cage and throw this traitor in with the others!" he roared. Duke and Wildwing grabbed the door's rubber handle, unlocked the cage, and pulled it open. The four within snarled and rushed for the door, but Brooklyn blocked them and shoved them back as he was thrown in. He stood up nervously as the four in the cage looked at him rather judgmentally. Nervous, he turned around and roared at those outside the cage. The four appeared interested. When Lex gave him a thumbs up, Brooklyn knew his plan was working. He howled and spread his wings, spitting angrily at his 'captors'. He then turned and roared triumphantly at the four, who adopted the bold creature immediately as their new leader. In the other cage, Zelda sulked noisily.

                "Now what do I do?" Brooklyn whispered to those outside the bars.

                "Try and get them to trust you." Tanya said.

                "But how?" he asked. Nosedive suddenly had an idea, standing on tiptoe to whisper it to Goliath. He thought hard upon receiving the message.

                "It's risky, but it just might work." he said. Goliath went up and snorted at Brooklyn, who roared bravely back and pounded the door. Goliath suddenly swung it open! Brooklyn stood shocked. Goliath gestured to him.

                "Go on!" he hissed. Brooklyn leapt out and tackled Wildwing falsely, and those outside the cage flew into a faked panic. The four in the cage howled and leapt to freedom, flying out into the night sky.

                "Try and get them under control Brooklyn!" Goliath called, as the red Gargoyle followed them. Zelda roared at things in general, still held captive.

 

                The four swirled around, proud of their freedom as Brooklyn flew up among them. He supposed they held him responsible for getting them out of those cages. Slowly, the Gargoyles and Ducks came out. Matt snarled and leapt at Nosedive, who ran back into the safety of the castle.

                "Whoa!" he yelled. Brooklyn caught Matt by the tail and pulled him away. The four were confused.

                "Maybe I can get them to take me to the Grimorum." Brooklyn called.

                "Good idea!" said Wildwing. "We can track you from a safe distance." As Nosedive came outside, his com beeped.

                "Mighty Ducks, you got the Dive live!" he answered.

                "Dive, that you?" It was Turbulance.

                "Hey Turby! You finally got back from that stupid LA stunt with the others?"

                "Yeah, Phil FINALLY let us go. But where are you? I thought you'd all be here when we got back."

                "Um, we've had a bit of a problem..." Nosedive began.

                "Whoa, wait a minute...." Turbulance said, her voice changing sharply. Nosedive frowned.

                "What is it?" Suddenly, the video image was lost. He could hear Turbulance yelling.

                "You stupid Saurian scum! And that's such a stupid impression!" There was the crackle of explosions and shattering glass. Nosedive heard her scream. Slowly, the video image cleared. Thrash looked into the com.

                "Thrash, buddy what happened?!" Nosedive asked, alarmed.

                "Those big lizards just trashed the place man! Look's like Turb's been hit."

                "What?" Now Wildwing and the rest of the Ducks had caught whiff of the event, and were watching.

                "Yeah she got hit with this weird black arrow man... she's really stoned." QJ was beside Thrash.

                "QJ, whos' with you?" Duke asked.

                "Just me and Destiny here. We're okay." he replied.

                "Get Turby somewhere safe now. We'll be there in a second." Wildwing instructed. They closed their coms.

                "Draguanus is trying to put a spell on our friends back in Anaheim... we'll have to split up." Mallory explained to the Gargoyles.

                "Okay, Grin, Dive and Tanya come with me. We can take the Migrator and the rest of you can jet back to Anaheim in the Aerowing." Wildwing instructed.

                "I'll go with you." Angela volunteered. Bronx stepped up with her, he wanted to go as well.

                "Ya must hurry lads." Hudson said. "The sun will soon set there also."

                "Right, we'll be in touch." Duke said, as they ran for the ship. They let the Migrator out of the back hatch, before they loaded in and blasted off.

 

                Brooklyn watched them go. He slowly cycled around to look at his four new 'assignments', observing them. They glided on the wind rather placidly, looking very disordered and confused. Brooklyn knew that he'd have to be careful with these four. And they'd have to let Zelda out sooner or later. He could end up in deep if he got into trouble. Matt slowly glided up beside him and whined. Brooklyn cocked his head. Lindsay joined in, and started edging away from the group. Candy and Freefall joined quickly. Brooklyn sped to catch up. He'd have to follow these four for now, hoping that they'd lead him to Draguanus. But what on earth would he do then?

 

                Mallory peered fearfully into the dark closet. Thrash stood above him with a broom in hand.

                "I keep tellin' ya man, it was totally weird! It was like she just froze up man." he stammered. Duke dragged a statue of Turbulance out of the closet and into the light, to reveal her form curled up in pain, an arrow sticking from her shoulder. Quacker Jax shook his head sadly, as he and Destiny stood worriedly.

                "This is weird, is she going to turn out like the others?" Destiny asked.

                "We've got to get her someplace secure..." he said, standing up.

                "And quick. The sun's gonna set in ten minutes." Mallory said.

                "Let the ten minutes pass." Quacker Jax said musingly, rubbing his beak. The others stared at him. "I've got a plan... we've just got to take it carefully."

 

To be continued.....