Still hidden behind the console, Alex watched as the lab door opened. Fala had been right; it was indeed some unwanted guests...specifically, the Goon Squad. Alex smiled. If there was one thing he knew by instinct, it was clear and absolute:In a surprise attack, get in the first shot. He was more than ready to put that theory to the test. He reached behind him for a nearby beaker and tossed it into the open.
They lowered their rifles to shoot it. Alex got them first, bowling them into unconsciousness with a blast from his tail. His eyes returned to their normal green color. "Well, it's good to know some things still work, regardless of dimension," he told himself. Then, with a crackle of blue lightning, he disappeared to join the others.
-0-
"Rubella?" Rebecca asked, "What's your father like?"
The question caught her totally off-guard. "I...couldn't tell you," she sighed. "He died shortly after my sister was born. He wasn't like yours, if that's what you mean..."
"Oh...I'm sorry. What happened?"
"He...fell into a vat of dip..."
"Dip? I don't understand..."
"It's evil stuff," Ruby said. "Ink and paint remover. It's the only thing that can kill a toon outright...and I hope you never encounter it." She found it hard to talk about, even now. "I didn't take his death very well..."
"I can imagine...What do you mean?"
"Well, let's just say I was at that rebellious stage in my life, and that just sort of...well, pushed me over the edge." She sighed sadly. "I did a lot of things after that...things I'm still not proud of..." She stopped briefly; no need to tell Rebecca more than she needed to know. Ruby shed a tear. "You know, there isn't a day goes by that I don't miss him..."
"I'm sorry; I guess I shouldn't have asked..."
"No, no, it's all right," she sniffed, wiping her eyes with her blouse sleeve.
Rebecca bowed her head respectfully, then spoke. "Well, if it means anything, I think he would be proud of you, anyway..."
"Thanks, Rebecca," Ruby smiled, still sniffing. Suddenly, the air around them filled with the crackle of blue lightning, heralding the arrival of Alex. "Could you try coming in a little quieter next time?" Ruby asked, half-jokingly.
"Can I help it if I like to make an entrance?"
"Well, try, won't you?" Rebecca snapped at him. "We don't wanna give away our location!" She turned on her heels and dashed off to join the others.
Alex was slightly puzzled. "Did I come at a bad time?"
"Around here, when isn't it?" She paused. "Sorry, Alex, it's got nothing to do with you..."
"I could tell," he said softly. "Come on, I think the others are expecting us..."
-0-
The Lord High Mayor of Perfecto Plaza, Robert Rat, stood against the window in his palatial office, dressed to the nines in full military regalia. He would have painted a handsome figure indeed, except for two things. One, he didn't know how to paint. Two, and more prominent, were the four ugly scars that ran down the left side of his face. Every time he looked at them in a mirror, or even as much as thought about them, he thought instantly of Rebecca, for it was she who'd put them there. He'd long since stopped thinking of her as his daughter. Now, she was merely one more political enemy to be destroyed. Reconciliation was long out of the question. No, she had to be killed. A knock on the door interrupted him. "Yes?" he said sharply.
One of his Goon Squad entered the room. He bowed stiffly and saluted. "Excellency, we've found her."
"Continue," he said coldly.
"She's hiding out in an underground burrow in the middle of Perfecto Forest...and there's more..."
"Go on..."
"She and that mangy coyote she pals around with have been seen in the company of Ukariah and his group just this afternoon." He spat the words out contemptuously.
Robert perked up. "UKARIAH? Are you sure?"
"Yes, Excellency!"
"Thank you, that will be all," he said. The Goon didn't wait to leave. "Hmmm...well, Ukariah, you've kept your word; but don't think you can count on your rabbit's feet to bring you luck forever," he laughed evilly. With that, he pulled out a laser pistol from a desk drawer, aimed, and made a perfect bull's-eye in a picture of the offending rabbit on a dart board. Both the picture and the dart board blew up. He laughed ominously. Boy, it felt good to be alive...
-0-
Catastrophe sat listening through his headphones, and didn't like what he was hearing. "Eh, what's up, coyote?" Buster sauntered up to him. Catastrophe waved him off...then threw his headphones off quickly, as if he'd either been attacked by bees, or the "bug" he'd planted in the Mayor's office had been zapped by a laser pistol.
"YEEEEOOOWWWWCCCHHH!" he shouted, holding his ears in pain.
"Catastrophe, are you okay?" Ukariah asked.
He nodded. "Chief, they know where we are!"
"WHAT? So SOON?" Ukariah sighed. "Well, he's persistent; I'll give him that much." He turned to address the small band of rebels and Toons. "Okay, listen up! We've been found! I don't know how, but we have. Take only the essentials and head to emergency exit 'B'. We're not gonna have a lot of time, people, so let's MOVE IT!!" The rebels rushed to comply, and in only a few seconds, the place was completely deserted, except for the Toons.
"Hey, what about us?" Plucky yelled. "Hmmph! Some hosts!"
"Quiet, Plucky!" Alex said sharply.
"Okay, so I'll be quiet..."
-0-
"Uke, haven't we forgotten someone?" Rebecca asked.
"No,I think we're all..." Then it hit him. "Ohmygosh!! The others! They don't know where exit 'B' is!"
"I don't even know where exit 'A' is," Barb remarked.
"There isn't one," Catastrophe answered.
"No wonder I could never find it..."
Ukariah ignored her, and checked his watch. "Well, it won't matter now," he sighed remorsefully. "In about 10 seconds, they'll either be fish food, or the Lord Mayor will have captured them." He paused. "And that's if they're unlucky..."
-0-
"Listen, do you guys hear something?" Plucky asked nervously. Alex would've told him to be quiet again, except he heard it, too.
"I hope you're all good swimmers," he said ominously.
"LOOK OUT!" Ruby shouted, as a torrent of water came flooding through the burrow--directly at them!
"What a way to go," Babs said.
"What an overused cliche," Buster replied.
"I've got an idea," Alex yelled. He quickly wrapped his tail around the Toons, concentrated hard, and hoped against all hope that this crazy idea would work...if it didn't kill them in the process. As the water covered their heads, it crackled with blue sparks...
-0-
Alex slowly opened his eyes. So, thankfully, did the other Toons. Considering their options, it was a good thing they materialized in the midst of the rebels. He didn't even want to think about the other option.
Catastrophe whistled again. "Boy, you guys must lead charmed lives!"
"Well, of course," Plucky quipped, coughing up water. "We never go anywhere without our lucky rabbits'feet!"
"I'll ignore that," Buster grimaced.
"What I don't understand," Catastrophe said, "is how they knew we were with Ukariah..."
"Unless they mistook Buster for him," Rebecca said. "Except for the eyepatch, it's easy enough to do."
"And that gives me an idea!" Ukariah replied. "Buster, can we talk?"
"Since I haven't got a joke for that line, hokay." Meanwhile, Babs and Shirley were talking to Rubella, who felt absolutely miserable by now...and not just because of her passing resemblance to a drowned rat. Ruby told them what Fala had said about killing the Lord Mayor.
"I don't know, guys," she said softly. "I don't think I can be a part of something like that..."
"Like, since when did YOU develop a social conscience, anyway?" Shirley prodded her.
"So I'm a late bloomer, like, sue me, and shut up, 'kay?" Ruby replied angrily.
Babs attempted to defuse the situation as best she could. "Now there's the Rubella we all know and love," she chirped happily. Ruby wasn't buying it. "No good, huh?"
"I'm sorry, guys," Ruby said. "It's...well, personal..." Babs and Shirley eyed each other. They knew exactly what she meant; it was Ruby's personal 'Achilles Heel'.
Babs spoke softly. "It's your dad again, isn't it?" Ruby nodded, lips quivering and tears forming in her eyes. "Sorry...we had no idea..."
"It's not just that," Ruby finally said. "It's...well, I think about poor Rebecca, and what I'd do if I were in her place..."
Shirley grabed her firmly by the shoulders. "Rubella Marie Rat, you listen to me, and listen good! You've got to stop this self-pity and transference trip you're on, okay? Like, even though you can still be an insufferable jerk, you're still a good toon inside. You'll never convince me of it, of course, but it's true! You're a lot of things, Ruby, but timid isn't one of them! I'll bet if it comes right down to it, you've got guts you don't even know you have."
"(Sniff) You think so?"
"Girl, I know so!! Besides, nobody's asked you to actually kill anybody..."
"True..."
"Okay. Better?"
Ruby smiled. "Lots! Thanks, Shirley."
"Like, no problem, dudette!"
Babs was amazed. "Shirley, I'm amazed! I didn't think you two would ever bury the hatchet!"
"No big deal, Babs...the hard part was getting through all that new age self-help drivel without saying 'or some junk' even once!"
"What was that?"
"No-thing..."
-0-
To be continued...
To get to part 5, click here.
(c) 1997 jwithers@tcfn.org