Mighty Ducks-The Second Line

D.U.C.K.S.

Chance still surveyed the area with her binoculars and searched for Authority movements. Ice sat on a rock next to her and gazed at all the lights of the city. Sara and Sunrise sat next to their AeroWings talking about the mission.
Sara was quiet and stared out towards the cliff's edge. She held a small pebble of a rock and was moving around between her fingers. Sunrise picked up a small pebble and threw it at her partner, just as she did back before the Ducks took the supply bunker. Sara felt the small rock hit her shoulder. She turned her head and rested it on her shoulder. "Hmm." she murmured.
Sunrise looked into the eyes of her student. They had so many emotions scattered throughout them. She could see loneliness, sadness, and fear. It hurt her to see her friend in so much confusion. She did not know where her newfound love was, and she felt lost.
"I've heard that eyes are windows to the mind." Sunrise spoke. Her voice penetrated the cold, quiet air. Sara jumped a little at the sound of it.
"That's really nice." Sara said. "Where did you hear it from?"
Sunrise bowed her head as if she had done something wrong. She then kicked her head back up and looked directly into Sara's face.
"Stivz told me earlier today, right after we had lunch."
Sara thought about the quote, and then thought about who said it. Tears suddenly began to swell in her eyes. She folded her arms on her knees and put her head down. Sunrise saw a group of tears trickle down to the ground, catching every bit of light they could reflect. She then moved herself over next to Sara and put her arm around her, holding her still to comfort her.
"I'm sorry I brought it up." she apologized. "I know how much he means to you. And I'm sure he's safe down there in the city. He's the bravest Duck I've ever known, and he's got his team to help him out. So, don't you be worrying yourself sick about it." Sunrise saw Sara's head begin to rise out of its slump. She patted her arm softly, reassuring her it would be all right.
"Stivz will come back for you, I swear."
Sara looked up and gazed out towards the cliff again. She then spoke through her sobs. "I know he's all right." Sara then slowly got up and walked towards the cliff. She passed many resistance troopers sitting together playing cards and sharing stories. Before she got to the edge of the cliff to look over, she heard a noise coming from where Ice and Chance were. It was a radio. Sara's heart began racing. Was anyone from the Second Line hurt? Was Stivz in danger? She rushed over to Ice and Chance and listened in on the transmission.
"Ice come in! This is the strike team!" Erin's voice came in over the radio. "Please answer!"
Ice grabbed the microphone and spoke. "Ice here. What's the problem."
Stivz's voice broke in on the radio. "Ice, you need to get your men together and move the heck out of there! There's a horde of Authority vehicles and soldiers coming your way, and they'll be on your back no more than two minutes!"
Sara didn't listen to the message. All she could do was listen to the sweet, reassuring sound of Stivz's voice. She was so relieved that we was safe, that she completely ignored what he had to say. When she saw Ice's expression change, she knew that Stivz reported something serious. Sara became more alert, and listened to Ice's response.
"Copy that, Stivz." he said. "We'll move as fast as we can."
Ice through the microphone down and yelled at his men.
"Everyone! Into the AeroWings!!"
The troopers were shocked to hear the order, but when they saw the many small lights coming at them in the sky, they quickly jumped to their feet, grabbed their packs and ran for the ramps into the AeroWings. Sunrise got to her feet and ran up the ramp to the cockpit.
Ice, Chance, and Sara began to run for the second AeroWing. When Chance turned around and looked over her shoulder, she saw small figures hanging from the lights in the sky. They were the dark Authority soldiers on an air siege. Chance grabbed her puck blaster at her side and fired behind her. The soldiers answered by returning fire to the three last Ducks. A blast from the Authority's weapons created an explosion besides Sara that knocked her to the side. She fell and became dizzy. She couldn't see the lights of her AeroWing anymore, and she couldn't see anymore Ducks. She got to her feet and looked around. Dust was in the air, and made it hard to see. She then made out a dim group of lights through the dust. It was her AeroWing, and she heard the engines begin to start, She started to rush for the sound. Suddenly, a force knocked her back down on her knees, and she felt someone grab her by her arms. She struggled with her capture, but she felt a sharp, fierce blow to the back of her neck. Everything began to go black, and the last thing she heard was the roar of the engines of the AeroWings taking off and disappearing into black inky night.

"Come in Ice." Erin spoke into the radio. "Ice, please report in."
James stood over her shoulder trying to listen in to anything that came over the radio. "What do you think all that was?" he asked.
Betsy shook and then lowered her head. "It's seemed that the Authority finally located them and decided them as a threat."
Dusty was once again at his lookout point in the edge of the alleyway. He saw lights begin to come around the corner once again, and he came back to the team.
"Another group of Authority vehicles are coming this way." he reported. "We may want to see what they might have."
Stivz nodded. "Okay." He then turned to Blade and Nylessa. "You two will scope it out on the fire escapes, but be careful not to be seen."
Blade nodded and grabbed Nylessa by the shirt and they both rushed out towards the street area.
Dusty ducked again and took a good look as the Authority convoy passed the alleyway. Lights circled one particular vehicle with a large metal cage on top of it. Stivz was curious, and he scanned the large vehicle wit his mask. He then saw something that he did not expect.
After the convoy had passed, Blade and Nylessa returned from their watch. They jumped from the ladder attached to a building and turned to Dusty.
"We have some bad news." Nylessa said.
Dusty nodded back at them. "I think Stivz already knows." He motioned over towards Stivz's direction. The pair looked and saw Stivz crouched over his knees, contemplating what to do now.
"They've got Sara." he said slowly. "The odds are now higher."
Stivz reached down and pressed a button on the bottom of his skates. A high pitched humming began to emanate from the skates, and a small outlet on the back of the skates started to glow a mild green. He then took out his puck rifle and charged it. A much larger engine roared and the Ducks heard their cue. All the members of the Second Line pressed the buttons on their skates and brought out their weapons. Erin strapped her bow and quiver around her shoulder, and Betsy put on a backpack full of assorted puck weapons, ranging from puck blasters to explosive puck bombs.
"Everyone ready for a little refreshing skate in the middle of the night?" James asked as he reloaded a new clip of pucks into his handgun. Dusty smiled.
"Who isn't ready for this?" he remarked. "I bet everyone has been anxious to try out this new speed equipment."
Stivz took a step out into the street and looked around. No Authority vehicles were in sight. He turned around and looked inwards towards the headquarters. It was a large hill down to the center of the city.
"I feel the need..." he joked. James and Dusty joined in.
"The need for speed." they all laughed.
Stivz's mask flashed silver upon his beak. The seriousness of the situation immediately made the eyes of the mask blaze red. The glowing red haze traced around throughout the air, and Stivz's attitude changed dramatically.
"Let's go find Sara and deliver some punishment."
The Second Line nodded, and they all jumped out onto the street and sped downhill towards the middle of the city.

Above the city, Black Phoenix watched all of the drama unfold below him. He watched as the large convoy moved towards the headquarters tower.
"It is time." he said deeply. He then reached for his belt and pulled a long stretch of rope. He held it in one hand and looked out over the edge of the building again. He then charged the edge of the roof and jumped out into the night.

Two dark Authority soldiers stood outside a barricade about 300 yards away from the main headquarters building. The barricade was a steel forest of beams and fence. The two soldiers, Privates McCarter and Warrick, were armed with daggers and tachyon weaponry. One of them held up a scanner and waved it out over the dark streets in front of them. The two were on guard patrol, keeping possible attackers far from the tower. McCarter spoke.
"Anything on the scanner, Warrick?"
Private Warrick shook his head. "No, not a thing in sight." he answered. "Not even on the top of the hill."
The barricade was at the bottom of a steep hill that led directly towards the headquarters. This was a key area to make an attack from.
"Oh well," McCarter said. "Just check again in a minute. You want some coffee?"
"Sure, thanks!" said Warrick. McCarter revealed a black and gray thermos from his backpack and handed it to his fellow soldier. Warrick unscrewed the cap and drank, he let out a soothing sigh. His heavy eyelids suddenly flashed upward for a minute., and his body became relaxed. He put down the coffee and looked up at the sky, and admired the few stars that he could see. He kicked back and took another long drink from the thermos. He closed his eyes for a second, and when he opened them again, he looked out beyond their guard post and out towards the top of the hill. He saw seven figures begin to rise over the horizon of the street. The figures stopped and stood still at the top.
Warrick gagged and coughed out the coffee. He then stared wide-eyed at the street above him. McCarter quickly looked over at his choking friend. "What's wrong?" he asked.
Warrick quickly grabbed the heat scanner and pointed it at the top of the street. Once the scanner confirmed that the figures were flesh and blood, the soldier set the scanner for identification. In a few seconds, the scanner displayed "DUCKS".
"Crap!" Warrick cried. He then turned to his partner. "Call for backup support, and fast!!"
As McCarter reached for the radio, Warrick saw all seven figures begin to speed down the long hill. These Ducks moved much faster than anything the soldiers had ever seen. McCarter dropped the radio mouthpiece and grabbed his tachyon blaster. Warrick followed his lead and raised his weapon and aimed at the incoming Ducks.
"Watch that fire!" called Nylessa. As she gained speed on her modified jet- blades, she and Blade drew their DuckSabres. Stivz reached behind his back and pulled out the hockey stick blade. In a flash of light, the blade once again became a whole stick.
James was crouched low to the ground, catching even greater speed, as Dusty also sped beside him. They dodged the blaster fire and reached for their own puck weapons.
Tachyon blasts exploded all around them, and one blast blew a large hole in the pavement.
"Jump!" yelled Dusty. As all the Ducks reached the cloud of smoke above the pothole, they all leaped over the crevasse. The two Authority soldiers watched with gaping mouths in disbelief as they saw the invaders appear from the smoke.
"Run for the tower!" yelled Warrick. The two soldiers turned and started to run the 300 yards back to the headquarters. They could hear the small jet engines inside the Ducks' jet blades quickly catching up to them.
"Forget this." said McCarter. "I'm fighting." He grabbed his blaster and wheeled around, just in time to see Stivz trip him up with his hockey stick. McCarter fell face first onto the ground. He rolled over onto his back and tried to get up, but Stivz held the blade of his stick to the soldier's throat.
James and Dusty continued to chase Warrick. They aimed their puck launchers and were about to fire when Warrick suddenly turned around and tossed a knife in the direction of the oncoming attackers. James never saw it. The knife found home inside James's right arm. James immediately dropped his weapon and fell onto the hardtop. He slid for a good distance and finally stopped. Dusty forgot about Warrick and steered towards his friend to see if he was all right. Warrick took this advantage.
"Two birds with one stone." he said as he raised his blaster. He then fired.
Nylessa and Blade sped towards Warrick after he fired. They both clotheslined him and knocked him unconscious. They both screeched to a stop and came back to make sure everything was under control.
James and Dusty were badly hurt. James could not move his arm, and Dusty was having trouble standing from the blast from Warrick's tachyon blaster. Blade tended to their wounds. She tore a strip of cloth from her uniform and tied it around James's arm to stop the bleeding. James silently mouthed a thank you and then closed his eyes.
Stivz and Erin came up to the group holding McCarter still. The agitated soldier was fidgety, and would not keep his mouth shut.
"Give up while you can, Ducks!" he yelled. "In the end you will all be dead, and the Authority will rule the galaxy!"
Stivz looked over to Erin.
"Could you do something to calm him down?" he asked.
Erin nodded, and then took her laptop and knocked McCarter over the head with it. McCarter closed his eyes, and his head fell.
"Sleep tight, asshole!" Erin grinned.
Nylessa held Dusty up straight and deactivated her DuckSabre. Dusty looked at the two unconscious soldiers, and then looked over at the clear path towards the headquarters tower.
"Well, Stivz," he said. "What's next."
Stivz scratched his beak and thought for a minute. He then looked up at the large tower, and the group of lights on the top floors. The eyes in his mask became a dark blood red once again.
"I'm paying the head of the Authority a little visit."

Warstrike and Street lay low behind a large group of bushes and looked at the guards in front of the entrance to the tower. They watched as the guards walked back and forth in front of the doors, keeping an eye out for anything. Suddenly, something else caught Street's eyes.
She looked over at the street that led into the tower, and saw a group of Ducks sneaking from hiding place to hiding place. One of the Ducks noticed the two girls, and then started to make her way towards them. The others noticed where she was going, and then followed her. They all finally met up behind the bushes.
Warstrike looked at Stivz in awe and gathered up courage to speak.
"Are you the team we've been hearing about?" she asked.
Stivz nodded. "Yep, but right now we need to clear out this area of soldiers. Are you two armed?"
Street pulled out her puck launcher and showed it to Stivz. Stivz grinned and looked out over the bushes. There were about 14 soldiers. A surprise attack would take care of these soldiers easily.
Stivz turned back to his team. "Okay guys, here's the deal." he said. "On my mark, I want you all to fill the area with as many pucks as you have."
His Second Line nodded in agreement. And Stivz got ready to fire.
Suddenly, Black Phoenix appeared from the sky and began to attack the soldiers! He drew a sabre and began cutting the Authority soldiers down to size. When Phoenix backed himself into a corner, Stivz acted fast.
Stivz stood up and yelled to his team. "Clear it out!!"
All the Second Line stood up with Stivz and sprayed the soldiers with speeding pucks. Some soldiers about to do in with Phoenix were knocked down by the pucks and were sent to the ground. The smoke cleared, and so was the area. All of the Authority soldiers in the area were under control, and the Ducks had captured the entrances and exits to the building. Stivz walked from the Ducks' hiding place behind the bushes and looked around. Not a single Authority soldier in sight! He was pleased, and he smiled.
"All right!" he said. "Let's get to work and get Sara back."

Stivz locked the last super-explosive onto the last support beam. The Ducks had a supply of super-explosive pucks on hand, and were planning on destroying the headquarters to finally end this war. Stivz turned around and saw his team looking back at him, oddly. James stepped forward with a bandaged arm and put his other hand on Stivz's shoulder.
"You can do it, buddy." he said to him. "Go bring her back for us!"
Erin typed a little on her laptop. "I'm arming the super-explosives to detonate in ten minutes." she said. "You'll have that much time to rescue Sara and get out of the building anyway you can."
Stivz began to set his watch. Dusty took out a puck launcher from his holster and gave it to him.
"When you finally meet up with that bastard up there," he said. "Give him a shot for me." Stivz took the weapon and put it on his belt.
"The timer will start as soon as we leave the building." Erin added. "When the pucks detonate, all the main support beams of the building will collapse, as well as the building. Please be careful."
Stivz walked through the open door and turned around once again to see his team one last time.
"Wish me luck." he said as the doors began to close. "Take care."
All the Second Line nodded. When the door finally closed, Stivz's wrist com beeped. The clock had started. He unholstered his puck rifle and charged it. He heard the engine inside his weapon hum and turn. Stivz relaxed and closed his eyes.
"Music to my ears." he said.
Stivz walked up the stairs one story and found the main lobby of the headquarters. It was quiet, and not one single soldier was near. They were probably out either fighting the rest of the Ducks' troops, or running for their lives. Stivz carefully waked across the lobby and made his way to an elevator. He pushed a button and the doors open. He glanced in and saw a camera up in the corner of the elevator cabin near the button panel. Instead of shooting it, Stivz crept in and pressed himself against the wall under the camera. He then pressed the button for the top floor with his beak. The silver doors closed and the elevator began to move upwards.
Stivz was uncomfortable pressed against the button panel. He looked up at the camera and noticed it was on a swivel mount panel. Stivz took his rifle and carefully moved the camera to face another direction. He pointed the camera lens to face the other wall, where he couldn't be seen by it. Stivz backed away from the panel, and as he backed away, he saw a button light up on the panel. Someone had called for the elevator a few floors above him! Stivz had to think fast. He would be seen in no time.
He looked around him, searching for somewhere to go. He was trapped. Stivz then noticed a loose tile above him in the ceiling. He drew Dusty's gun and fired a puck up into the tile. The tile was knocked away and Stivz pulled himself up through the hole. When he was through, he placed the tile back into place and waited.
The elevator stopped, and Stivz looked up and around him. The elevator shaft was huge. It was quite a drop from where he was.
Stivz heard a noise and looked into the elevator through a crack in the tile. Two Authority soldiers entered the elevator and pressed a button. Stivz felt the elevator begin to drop underneath him. He wanted to go up. He turned a knob on the back of his rifle and pointed it into the air. He fired two grappling hook pucks and waited for the pucks to catch something. The noise of the rifle attracted the attentions of the two soldiers. They looked around them confused. Stivz held his breath as he felt the rifle's line become taut. He grasped the rifle as it retracted the line. He began to move upwards again, and the elevator fell beneath him. He shot up towards his objective: the top floor.

The Ducks outside kept looking at their watches on their wrist-coms, and waited for the explosion that was inevitable. They also watched for Authority soldiers.
"Eight minutes left." Erin reported. "Stivz should be near the top by now."
Stivz finally made it to the top of the building, and he swung to the doors of the elevator shaft. He disconnected his line, and leaned onto the doors. He tried to listen in through the doors to see if anyone was waiting for him. He suddenly heard a motor start, and the elevator cables began to move. The elevator was coming back up towards him.
Stivz waited for the elevator to get closer. As it moved faster towards him, Stivz got ready. When the elevator was close enough, Stivz jumped and crashed the cracked tile. He landed exactly on top of the two soldiers inside and pushed their heads together, knocking them both out. He searched the soldiers for any useful supplies. He found I.D. cards, knives, and parachutes.
"Parachutes?" Stivz choked. Why would Authority soldiers need parachutes?? He forgot about that and strapped one pack over his shoulders.
The elevator slowed down as it approached the top floor. Stivz hid along side the doors as the elevator came to a stop.
Corban looked up from his desk when he heard the bell of the elevator ring. He grabbed a small hand blaster on his desk as he stared straight at the doors.
The two large doors began to open, and Corban saw the pair of unconscious soldiers. Curious, he signaled his guards to investigate.
Directly above and behind Corban's desk, hung a large transparent plexiglass box that held Sara captive, as if she was on display. The guards would often hoot at her in her tight flight suit. She was hungry and tired, and her face was a mess, but she was still beautiful.
The guards pulled the two limp soldiers from inside the elevator and checked their vital signs.
"They're still alive, sir." one guard reported. "Someone must have hit them and run."
Corban grew angry. "Who are they?"
The guards turned the soldiers over and scanned their I.D. cards with a red scanning device. Their names appeared on the display.
"They are privates Newberry and Krone." said the guard.
"Who could have done this?" Corban wondered.

Back to StivzWorld
� 1997 [email protected]

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page