"that's a girl?" Phil asked when he found out about Spirit.
"Yes Phil. Spirit is my daugther" Tanya said.
"talk about a photoshoot!" Phil exclaimed, overjoyed as he took out his phone.
"no photoshoot's Phil" Tanya said "I want my daughter to have a normal life,...out of the eye of the camera"
"dad....when are we going? Im an hour late" a freaky looking girl came out of his office. She was dressed like a goth.
"not now Morgan" Phil growled. Disturbed by how she looked, as well as the others beside's Spirit.
"hey, im Spirit" Spirit shook her hand.
"im Morgan and an hour late for my first day at public school" she said.
"skip it for gods sake Morgan!" Phil exclaimed.
"Im walking to school from now on" Morgan told him "I should call mom and tell her that you won't take me to school if it didn't mean she'd send me to another private one"
"call your mother and I'll ground you" Phil warned her.
"I don't know why you didn't make her have an abortion if you didn't intend to take care of me" Morgan said straight out "even Uncle Stu knows I was an unwanted birth" she walked out of the Pond carrying a few books in her arm's with a bookbag slung over her shoulder.
"Mum?...can I go with Morgan?" Spirit asked. Surprising them.
"doesn't she scare you?" Phil asked "she scares me and im her father"
"why should she scare me? I've worked with people more dramatic then that" Spirit said
"oh yeah. Who?" Duke asked.
"Frotahma" Spirit said "you know. The guy with 9 heads, 4 arms, 3 legs, black scales, covered in slime that talks in screams an` looks like something from the Earth movie, Alien's" Spirit stated.
Duke held his stomach and looked like he wanted to puke.
"now I remember......ah` don't fell to good" he groaned, running into the bathroom just in time.
"go ahead sweety. I don't think it could hurt" Tanya let her go and she took off running with Reev at her side. "Try to get her to show you around!" she called after her. Spirit waved back as she went out the doors.
"was it wise to let Reev go with her?" Wildwing asked Tanya.
"you try telling that thing no" Duke said, coming back from the bathroom "it only listen's to her"
"I didn't know you had a daughter Phil" Nosedive teased.
"that's because I had her enrolled in a year round Boarding School. But it went bankrupt just before Christmas. Her mother say's she'll Appeal on our custody case and take her back if I don't act more like a father to her" Phil said, angrily, as he dialed a number on his Cellphone and slammed the door shut when he walked into his office, making the Duck's wince.
~~~~~ "aren't you scared of me?" Morgan asked Spirit, but she didn't seem annoyed.
"why? I've worked with other alien's that look like something from your movie's Alien's and Species" Spirit said.
"well your the first. My dad make's me so angry. He doesn't understand me at all" Morgan said, her hand to her face like she had a headache.
"your lucky you know your dad. I grew up thinking that two ducks named Talay and Zimra were my parent's, and after they died when I was about 2 I was raised by a Space Raider leader named Gunner, who I called dad even though I knew he wasn't. And when I came here I find out Tanya's my real Mum, and some drake named Tyler Torbey's my real dad" Spirit said.
"that's a good, but remarkably believable story Spirit" Morgan said "before we start a friendship, I want you to know im a Vegetarian and a Pagan. Most people don't like me just because im a Vegetarian. When they find out im a Pagan they wanna start another Witchhunt" Morgan told her.
"that's fine by me. I've know people that are vegetables" Spirit shrugged "I don't have a religion, so why should it matter to me what yours is?" Morgan smiled.
"so...tell me....what's Tanya like for a mom? I've never imagined her as a mother figure" Morgan asked as they sat down at a table in some dance joint Morgan had brought them into.
"she's ok I guess......but what do I know? I mean. Im 14 now, and only a year ago when It was my 13th birthday my employer's found out I was a girl and they sent other girls to work with me. And before I was 13, the last girl I saw was Talay and that was the day she was killed which according to Tanya is when I was 3 years, 8 months and 15 day's old" Spirit stated, stirring her coffee slowly.
"and what's so special about that date?" Morgan asked, zipping her coffee.
"that's the day of my life that Gunner took me. Tanya and everybody else call's it Kidnapping, even Duke, and he's technically my Boss and he had a lot to do with my upbringing. But how can it be kidnapping if my legal parent's were dead?" Spirit asked.
"it's a more convient word that best describes what was done. But by Maeve I wish I had a life like yours" Morgan said, jealous.
"no you don't. If Tanya found out all the danger I was in, and is in where ever I go, she'd never let me out of her sight's let alone the Pond" Spirit told Morgan "I've made a lot of enemies in my short life span, and so has Gunner who run's the Space Raider gang I was with. In Space Raider ranks, Gunner's a Raider King, and since im his adopted daughter, or fosterling, or whatever, im technically a Raider Princess. That makes me the target for just about every assasin that's being paid enough or their out of their mind" Spirit said, not really making a fuss about it. Reev was lying on the floor in front of the booth.
"and what's his story?" Morgan asked, pointing down at Reev.
"oh, him. According to Tanya, Talay and Zimra gave me Reev as a pet when I was 1 year old. The funny thing is that I actually remember that day, but nothing else up until I was 3. Reev's a Tangler. The ultimate watchdog, and an unstopable killing or hunting machine if you train them right. I didn't really train him. He's more like my guardian" Spirit said, reaching down to scratch behind his ears. "it's like an automatic instinct to protect your best friend"
"yeah. But it must be great having your life" Morgan said.
"nah. It's annoying. Im going through an identity crisis right now or something close to it. I know Gunner's gonna come for me someday soon and I'll have to choose. It'll either be my life as Spirit Sheryl Vanderflock the daughter of 2 of the smartest minds on Puckworld, or Walker Corby Zennon the only female Space Raider within the Brotherhood of the Blade, which technically doesn't exist anymore" Spirit said, brooding.
"well I can't help you there" Morgan zipped at her coffee.
"what about you? What's your story?" Spirit asked.
"my story? Nothing really. Unwanted birth, father devoriced my mother when I was 4. He won custody an` sent me to a year round boarding school, didn't see my father up until a month ago when the school went Bankrupt. Id rather be with my mother. I have no real friends that I can trust let alone a boyfriend" Morgan stated boringly "my life's been hell basically" she shrugged, it was her time to stir her coffee dully now.
"welcome to my world" Spirit saluted her, taking a long drink of her coffee. Morgan looked at her weirdly.
"you just drank black coffee. How can you stand it? I have to put at least milk in it" Morgan said. Spirit looked down at her glass in surprise.
"well....I've had stronger stuff....not to mention eaten worse" Spirit smirked.
"what do you think of Earth so far?" Thrash came over.
"pardon?" Morgan asked.
"I wasn't talking to you. I was talking to her. Nosedive called and told me about a new duck, which must be you" Thrash pointed to Spirit. "hi. Im Thrash" he shook both their hands.
"im Mookey" Mookey shook their hands
"Spirit Vanderflock" Spirit replied.
"Morgan Pomfeather" Morgan told him
"Pomfeather? like Phil?" Mookey asked.
"yeah. He's had me locked away in a year round boarding school since I was 5" Morgan stated.
"that old beachball's gotta kid?" Thrash excalimed in surprise. Morgan shrugged.
"at least im not the only one that thinks he's gonna die of a heartattack" Morgan smirked, making them gag with laughter.
"I guess it's wrong" Mookey shrugged, sitting down with them.
"what's wrong?" Spirit asked.
"that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree" Thrash interupted Mookey "look at Morgan. She's nothing like Phil"
"oh. THAT expression" Spirit said.
"what about you? Tanya is your mother isn't she?" Mookey asked.
"yeah. I guess. Before I came here I thought a dead dame named Talay was my mother" she said with a shrug "I've only known her for a month or two and the only thing I can say that we're alike is that I have her genius when it comes to technology" she scratched the back of her neck.
"come on. Finish your coffee and we'll show you around Anaheim" Mookey said.
"good. I haven't seen this place since I was 5 an` Spirit hasn't been out of the Pond very much" Morgan said as they got up. Mookey and Thrash didn't look to happy about that, Morgan noticed "im sorry. You were only talking to Spirit" she sat back down "I understand" she said quietly, opening her hardcover black book and started to read. Thrash and Mookey looked relieved.
"come on Spirit" Thrash said. Spirit looked at Morgan, then at them.
"whats your problem? You'll hang around with alien ducks but you won't hang out with one of your own kind?" Spirit asked him, like she was hurt.
"we don't have a problem...it's just that...well..." Thrash started.
"im a freak" Morgan stated.
"if your a freak im a saurian" Spirit said "come on Morgan. We'll find our way around Anaheim together" she pulled Morgan up "people who hate their own kind because of what they look like are the real freaks" she said, mostly to Thrash and Mookey then to Morgan, they left the shop.
"why did you do that?" Morgan asked her, shocked.
"I don't know. It's just that I don't understand why somebody would dislike their own kind just because of their looks. I mean, look at Reev. He doesn't care. Why should I? why should anybody? All that matter's is what's in your heart and your head" Spirit said as they walked down the street.
"it's called prejedice. Sterotyping one group of people because of their looks, or because of what a few did and hating that group. Those two didn't hate me, they just weren't comfortable with how I looked" Morgan explained to Spirit "up until a few decades ago, a majority of white skinned humans hated humans with black skin. That prejeduce still exist's today. Some people are prejeduce against gay and lesiban people.....that's people who mate with their own gender"
"I know. A bunch of the people I work with are like that" Spirit said "I don't care. Everybody tell's me to act like an individual and to judge other's as individual's to. Why can't they follow their own advice?"
"adult's are queer" Morgan agreed as she looked at her watch.
"in more ways then one" Spirit added. Morgan stopped her "what's wrong?"
"we should be getting back. By the time we get to the Pond It'll be dark. Come on, I've been in Anaheim long enough to know some shortcut's back to the Pond" Morgan said, darting into the alley. Spirit followed her up a fire escape "big city ain't it?" Morgan asked as they gazed out across the roof tops.
"I've seen bigger. In fact, I've been in a city that's the size of Earth's Moon" Spirit said "but this place is way more beautiful"
"what do you mean by the size of Earth's moon?" Morgan asked, looking at the moon she muttered some kind of prayer.
"the city exist's in space, one gigantic space station the size of your moon" Spirit said while looking elsewhere ".....what the hell?...." she asked.
"what?" Morgan asked, looking at her, Spirit pointed over across the rooftops to a swirling purple portal that dropped something just as it closed.
"come on. Let's check it out" Spirit took off, running across the roof top, jumped to the other, followed quickly by Morgan, they hopped from roof to roof till they reached the alley where the portal had been, they went down the fire escape to see two girl ducks and a male falcon unconcious on the ground. The falcon was none other then Falcone who was injured. "this guy just got outta jail 2 months ago" Morgan said, leaning over Falcone.
"what's Ernie gotten himself into now?" Spirit asked, ripping up Falcone's cape with a queer looking pocket knife to make bandage's, tended to his wounds.
"Ernie?" Morgan repeated, surprised.
"Falcone's only his last name. Don't call him that. He only let's me call him that" Spirit said.
"oh.....mah head..." one of the girl ducks dragged herself into a crouched possition, holding her head. A banged up hockey stick in her right hand. She head short blood red hair, and looked remarkably like Mallory. Dressed in a rib cut black tank top and a rib cut black leather vest that had been a leather jacket at one point, black jeans, black jetboots, a hostler containing a Puckblaster was attached to her yellow belt. A headwound on the right corner of her forehead had already doused the surrounding feathers with blood that was starting to dry. The girl was relatively short.
"easy. Your not where you think you are" Morgan told her. She gasped and backed away.
"What the hell are you?" the girl asked, calming down.
"im a human. And your on a planet named Earth, it's in a different universe from your Puckworld all together. We have a few Puckworlder's here" Morgan told her "my name is Morgan"
"if your going to call me anything, im Alley" the girl said as her other companion began to wake up.
"oh....mah camera" she whined. Holding up a busted photographer's camera. She was fairly tall, soft brown feather's with a long flowing braid of jet black hair. She was dressed in blue jeans, a bombers jacket, and sneakers.
"Falcone?....is he ok?" Alley asked, going over to his side, held his head in her laps.
"im no medic, but I think so" Spirit said, looking at Alley as she lifted Falcone's eyelids and then looked into his eye's "let me guess. Your his girlfriend?"
"No. He took me off the street last month, that's all" Alley said sternly "Bliss? are you ok?" she asked the other girl.
"no. My camra's busted, and so's the film. There goes my Pewter Puck for the first picture of a female saurian" she pouted.
"female saurian?" Morgan asked.
"don't ask Morgan. Just call Wildwing on my Com" Spirit tossed her com link over to Morgan "tell `em to come an` get me an we got company" Morgan did as told.
"Walker?....what are you doing here?" Falcone woke up and asked Spirit.
"long story Ernie....but my name's Spirit now. My real Mum's here" she told him, forcing him to lie back down.
"where are we?" Falcone asked.
"Earth" Alley told him.
"Earth?! no! Duke will kill me!" he sat up.
"what are you talking about? I know you were in jail, but why would Duke kill you? I've been here just under two months now, and I've peeked at his journal. He misses you" Spirit said.
"you didn't go back far enough. I was paid by Dragaunus to steal some jewels, I nearly killed Duke and I turned traitor to my own planet" Falcone told her sadly "im sorry Alley" he stroked her cheek.
"you were payed to steal jewels you idiot. That doesn't make you a traitor to Puckworld" Alley snapped at him.
"yeah. That's what Wildwing told me. Dragaunus was just another employer. Just because you stole a few gems for him doesn't make you a traitor Ernie. You didn't help him take over Puckworld did you?" Spirit told him. He shook his head "then your not a traitor" she tapped his cheek as the Migrator pulled up. "Spirit! get away from him!" Tanya said.
"it's ok Mum. He's not a traitor to Puckworld" Spirit said
"what do you mean?" Wildwing asked.
"all he did was steal a few gems. He didn't help Dragaunus take over Puckworld. Then he can't be a traitor to Puckworld. Just because your on somebodies pay roll doesn't mean you support their cause" Spirit told him.
"Allan?....Allan!!" Mallory exclaim ed, looking at the other red head who screamed bloody murder as Mallory swept her into a bear hug.
"lemme go! lemme go!!! I wish I died in the camps!!" Alley shouted in horror, trying to break free.
"Spirit's got a point Wildwing" Canard told him.
"I know. But where did they come from?" Wildwing asked, scratching his chin.
"Puckworld. Duh" Nosedive joked.
"how did they get here smart ass" Wildwing wacked him on the back of his head with his hand.
"ow!!" Nosedive exclaimed.
"they were chasing the saurian Thanatos who brought them here by means of a Portable Gateway generator" Khalida said "BRAWN's were monitoring them in Limbo at point of entry of gateway and point of exit"
"that's nice Khalida. But where's Thanatos now huh?" Nosedive asked.
"unknown location" she said "BRAWN's have no real power to see what happens on Earth. What we know of here is from the first BRAWN that came here of which only a head remains, and from what I experience" Khalida told him.
"that's perfect. We've got another lunatic saurian to take care of. I just hope he doesn't team up with Dragaunus" Canard said.
"Thanatos is a girl" Spirit told him "that's the one that hijacked my ship and how I got here too"
"resources report that Thanatos has been overheard refering to Dragaunus as loverboy" Khalida said "99.9 % chance of Dragaunus being Thanatos's current mate biased on profile" she added suddenly.
"BRAWN's? Dragaunus? Thanatos? mate? what are you talking about?" Morgan asked "and people call me weird"
"none of your concern Morgan. Just go home" Wildwing told her softly.
"one problem. It's clear across town!" Morgan told him.
"we'll bring you to the Pond. Phil doesn't go home till late" Tanya told her as they turned their attention to Alley and Mallory who was squeezing the life out of Alley.
"let her go Mallory" Khalida told her. Breaking them apart. Alley ran and hid behind Falcone.
"keep her away from me" she begged him, on the verge of tears.
"Alley?...are you ok?" Falcone looked shocked.
"her name is Allan MacMallard" Mallory slapped him "she's been missing since she was 6 year's old" Mallory said. "how can you be sure that she's a MacMallard?" Falcone asked.
"the Mask say's so" Wildwing said, dully surprised just as much as they were.
"I don't wanna be Allan again...." Alley whimpered "im Alley....plain old Alley...." she began to cry. Bliss patted her on the back.
"aw geez kid...im real sorry your here" Duke told Bliss.
"hey, Duke" she gave him a peace sign with a smile which only seemed to make him feel worse.
"im sorry Bliss. But your stuck here. We all are. We don't know of any way to get back to Puckworld" Duke said, kicking the dirt.
"and how would you know the photographer?" Falcone asked.
"she's got a habit of finding me and following me around. How do you think my picture got in the paper's so often?" Duke asked him "I could never catch her and keep her. And she wasn't doing any harm to us"
"beside's. If you did manage to catch me, my brother's would of blown you up" Bliss said, picking at the broken lens on the camera.
"and what makes you think your brother's could of done that?" Mallory had to chuckle, turning her attention away from Alley...or Allan....whatever.
"remember the R7 bridge bombings?" Bliss asked, looking through the camera.
"yeah. Every bridge ever made by the R7 Bridge Co. was blown up and the company went bankrupt" Mallory said "no one knows why the bridges were blown up or by who"
"oh I know why and who did it. My brother's blew it up because the custom's officer's there were employed by the R7 Bridge Co. to let drug traficer's pass on through" Bliss said.
"oh right" Duke rolled his eye's.
"well it's true. I have 10 brother's, all demolition expert's, who really hate drugs" Bliss said.
"alright. Im with the Military and dealt with classified information on bombings. Tell me the name of the terrorist, the job he did, and a bit of classified information that only someone like me would know" Mallory said.
"do you recall Operation IceAge?" Bliss asked. Mallory nodded, seeming surprised "the demolition team was made up of Shaden Poetarie, Kione Mahdem & Kokie Larcen, otherwise known as Kookey Flyer" Bliss said.
"how did you know?" Mallory asked.
"all my brother's changed their last name's. Kokie's my oldest brother" Bliss stated.
"but what was the Operation about?" Mallory asked, recovering from shock and surprise.
"Kokie didn't give care let alone be told what it was about. None of them were. All they were told, paid and ordered to do was rig up a kiloton of T9 explosive charges to a class Airbus Aerowing" Bliss said.
"that's right" Mallory stated in realization, half in fear.
"yeah. My brother's liked to brag a lot. Dad was pretty proud of them. The whole family carried on his tradition of pyro technic's. I did, but im more of a photographer" Bliss said.
"ok...now im scared" Morgan said "I'll risk walking home"
"come on Morgan. I'll drive you home" Nosedive said, taking a DuckCycle out of the Migrator.
"I've gone crazy. I know I have" Morgan said, getting on the bike, Nosedive drove off.
"I shouldn't a said dat in fronta her huh?" Bliss asked Duke.
"not really" Duke said.