Honestly, that's how it happened. I am a long time fan of both Rescue Rangers and Darkwing Duck. So, I was delighted to hear the small snippet of dialouge between Monty and Chip in the Darkwing Duck episode, "Twiching Channels". This turned to a more sad response when I heard that the episode was actually going to be a full-blown crossover between the two series.
But, the men in charge decided to ax the project, leaving only the hint of what might have been...
Thusly, I realized that the only way I was going to see something of a full crossover was to write one myself. So if you didn't like it, blame Disney. [grin]
Hope you enjoyed the tale.

THERE AND BACK...AGAIN?
By
Matt Plotecher

Characters from the series Chip 'n' Dale's Resuce Rangers and the
Darkwing Duck series are copyrighted by Disney, and used here  
without permission. All other characters are copyrighted by Matt 
 Plotecher.
Distribute freely, but do not modify.

--Chapter 1: "It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood..."--

     The building was isolated from the rest of the complex,  
sitting alone in a barren, darkened, concrete yard. The  
researchers liked to say it was because they needed quiet and  
privacy from the rest of the SHUSH compound to develop their  
work. Even the janitors, however, knew it was really because 
this  way damage would be minimal when the place finally 
exploded.  Whatever the reason, it turned out to be fortunate at 
the moment  for all of SHUSH. The research lab, due to it's 
isolation, was  easily closed off. Several barricades, with 
security guards and  vehicles tucked safely behind them, 
surrounding the entire  building. Searchlights swept over all 
possible exits, while  various scrying devices probed inside. 
Each time they did,  though, a sudden current overloaded them, 
sometimes so badly that  it melted the instrument completely.
     J. Gander Hooter surveyed the scene with a frown. He knew  
any attempts at electrical surveillance would fail. Not that 
they  really needed it to know who was in there, but they were 
worried  about where he was. Dozens of topsecret projects were 
at risk  now, either at being stolen or destroyed. So far, it 
had not come  to pass, but the director of SHUSH knew better 
than to press  luck.
     "I got here as soon as I got your message, J. Gander." A  
voice said from behind him. Hooter didn't need to see the  
dispersing blue smoke to know who it was.
     "Thank you for coming so quickly, Darkwing." Hooter 
replied.  "We've been watching him for close to fifteen minutes 
now, but  it's impossible to pin down where he is inside." A 
sudden surge  through another machine emphasized his point.
     Darkwing nodded. "Give me the complete rundown."
     "Well, our scientists were working as per usual, when he  
just quite simply walked out from around a corner. He then  
demanded to know where the bathroom was."
     "Excuse me?"
     "It took the scientists off guard, too. He said something  
like, 'No, that's not right...where is my...uh...you know...' 
and  so on. While he was trying to remember, our scientists 
showed the  first use of common sense this year and left the 
building. They  told security, who entered to neutralize the 
threat."
     Darkwing sighed and looked over at the ambulances.
     "Yes, they failed." Hooter said with a sigh. "But at least  
none were killed. He appeared to be more interested in searching 
 for something. That's when I called you."
     "Okay, then. Give me ten minutes and it'll be over with." 
He  started forward, only to find his way blocked by the Rock of 
 Gibraltar. Looking up, he recognized this particular geological 
 location as agent Grizzlikof. The immense bear towered over  
Darkwing, scowling. Of course, Darkwing had never seen 
Grizzlikof  with any other type of expression, so it was 
possible that  Grizzlikof smiled by scowling.
     "Sir, I must object!" Grizzlikof thundered. "We have 
several  highlyclassified projects in there. I do not think it 
wise to  let a freelancer," he sneered the word, "to be allowed 
within."
     Then again, maybe Grizzlikof's scowl really was just a  
scowl.
     "Besides," the bear continued, "I can have the intruder  
neutralized in only eight minutes."
     "Thanks ever so much, Griz," Darkwing stated, narrowing his 
 eyes, "But Gander called me because he wanted the best. Not the 
 paperwork. Besides, I can finish this in seven minutes."
     "Darkwing is best suited for this situation, agent  
Grizzlikof." Hooter said, stepping between the staredown  
contestants. "He has the most experience against this intruder,  
and I don't want to risk any more agents or equipment. We may be 
 able to overcome him given time, but I'm afraid that is not an  
option. You yourself mentioned the highlyclassified projects  
within the building. Who knows how many have already been marked 
 for theft? Or just studied, so he can replicate them himself? 
I'm  told that he is a highlycompetent inventor, and I can't 
take the  luxury of time now."
     Grizzlikof nodded abruptly. "Very well, sir." He stepped  
aside, next to Hooter. "But I could have done this in six  
minutes."
     Darkwing, who was beginning to turn his back, spun around 
to  face Grizzlikof. "Oh yeah? Well I can do this in five 
minutes,  Bongo!"
     Grinding his teeth, Grizzlikof snorted. "Twenty dollars 
says  you can't."
     "You're on! I'll have this case closed and return to claim  
my cash before you can blink."
     Hooter rolled his eyes, then remembered something. "Oh,  
Darkwing, try to keep this intruder from blowing up the 
building.  I'd like the lab boys to have first crack at that."
     For one of the few times in his life, Darkwing couldn't  
think of a response. He merely nodded, then blended into the  
shadows and disappeared from view.
     "Five minutes, Darkwing Disaster." Grizzlikof grinned.  
"Maybe it was good for him to go. I can use the money for this  
week's poker game."

     No lights were on inside. The searchlights from the outside 
 cast thick shadows on the floor. They danced across tables and  
desks until the light was abruptly cut off from the room, 
passing  along the outside wall. In the central lab, a single 
figure was  rummaging around a group of shelves. Papers were 
strewn about,  gizmos were taken apart, and loose change was 
pocketed for next  week's lunch money.
     "I...am the terror that flaps in the night!" A voice echoed 
 throughout the room.
     "Oh no..." Megavolt groaned. He turned to see the  
trademarked cloud of blue smoke billowing in the doorway.
     "I...am the science teacher whohey!" The voice snapped as  
Megavolt withdrew his Electrogun and began firing into the  
cloud. "Will you let me finish?!"
     Megavolt thought for a moment. Only a moment, though. "No."
     Another barrage of electrical bolts came flying into the  
cloud. They passed through harmlessly, blowing chunks of 
concrete  out of the wall behind it.
     And people wonder why I emerge from a blinding cloud,  
Darkwing thought. He quickly moved to cover before continuing.  
"As I was _saying_, I am the science teacher who gives you a  
failing grade! I..am Darkwing Duck!" He leapt up onto a table  
with a dramatic flourish, arms spread wide, cape dramatically  
flowing out behind him.
     "Happy now?" Megavolt asked, bringing his Electrogun around 
 to bear.
     "Not until your fuses are tripped and circuits broken..." 
He  grinned. "Sparky."
     "Arrrrgh! I _really_ hate it when you call me that, you
know!!!" He fired off another series of electrical bolts.
Darkwing sprang from the table as it was reduced to splinters,
flipping over at the apex of his jump, and landed directly behind
Megavolt. As Megavolt turned around to face him, Darkwing snapped
out his hand in a martial art chop.
     "ShupoundaHing!" He focused his strength into the blow,
knocking the Electrogun free from Megavolt's hand and sending it
skittering across the floor.
     "Oh yeah? Well, 'ShouldaSing' right back at you!" Megavolt
merely reached out to grab Darkwing, charging up his glove to
roast the duck on contact.
     Expecting this, Darkwing dropped to the floor, knocking
Megavolt's legs out with a sweep attack. "And that's 'Shupounda
Hing'. It's a focusing cry for congealing spiritual strength into
an attack."
     "Who are you? Darkwing Duck or Juice Lee?" Megavolt queried,
firing a burst of electricity from his glove as he regained his
feet. Darkwing dodged to one side, moving in again.
     This time, however, it was Megavolt who was expecting the
attack. Darkwing launched himself into a double webfoot kick
(patent pending), when Megavolt snagged the duck's legs and ran a
current through the airborne superhero. Megavolt used the
momentum to whip the dazed crimefighter off into a corner,
crashing him into a shelving unit. Several halffinished devices
tumbled down on Darkwing, bouncing rather well from his head.
     "I don't have time for you, Duck." Megavolt intoned in a low
voice. "I have bigger fish to fry." His plughelmet glowed for a
moment, then thousands of volts of electricity danced from it to
various devices in the room, bringing them to life and heading
towards Darkwing.
     Darkwing shook his head and regained control of reality in
time to see several robots, weapons, and toasterovens marching
towards him unerringly. He quickly scampered off to the side,
away from them, as he looked around for Megavolt. But the
luminous lunatic was nowhere to be seen.
     One of the robots stepped directly in front of Darkwing,
reaching out an appendage. The masked mallard stepped back, but
heard some vehicle driving in from behind. He sprang straight up,
letting the vehicle drive by underneath him and ram into the
robot, reducing them to scrap metal in the process.
     Seizing an overhead lamp, Darkwing swung across the room to
an open area near the doorway he had entered through. The various
machines swerved about, trying to reach him.
     "Hah!" Darkwing grinned. "The devious Darkwing Duck dodges
dexterously, deterring the deranged devices!" He nodded to
himself. Good alliteration, he thought. Now where is Megavolt at?
     He looked about, then heard a series of explosions coming
from the corridor beyond the doorway he was standing in. Peering
down the hallway, he caught a glimpse of Megavolt in a room at
the far end. "Aha!" Darkwing glanced at his watch. "Two and a
half minutes left, more than enough time tooOOOOOF!"
     His train of thought was derailed by a series of high
velocity toast, launched by one of the toasterovens that had
gotten a clear line of sight. The scorched pieces of bread
slammed into Darkwing's side, knocking him down.
     Brushing the crumbs off, Darkwing rolled out of the field of
fire, checking for any butter or jam stains on his outfit. "Whew,
none here. If I had to wash this suit again this week..." He
trailed off, noticing that he had rolled directly into a corner.
The numerous devices had blocked off all avenues of escape.
Darkwing was worried.
     Sure enough, checking his watch, he saw that he now had less
than two minutes to find and detain Megavolt. And these marauding
machines were not helping matters any. The squad of toasterovens
lined up, preparing another batch of burnt toast to fire.
Darkwing noted with disdain that they were even loading the toast
up with grape jelly; they were fighting dirty now.
     "Sorry, mechanized marvels," Darkwing reached into his cape,
withdrawing his Gasgun, "But didn't anyone ever tell you it's not
nice to cause a superhero to lose twenty bucks? Especially with
this month's poker game coming up." He set his Gasgun to
"Liquidize" and fired.
     Several capsules scattered out, which then burst into water
over the devices. Darkwing had guessed right, in that the
scientists of SHUSH were so concerned with advancing their
technologies, that they hadn't even bothered to waterproof their
inventions. Sparks flew as each of the devices shortedout,
collapsing in a heap. Darkwing stopped by them long enough to  
grab a few pieces of wellbuttered toast before heading off down  
the hallway.
     The door to the room where he had seen Megavolt was still
open, making his job easier. He leapt through, landing swiftly
into the middle of the room. Megavolt was over in a corner,
holding his Electrogun in one hand, and some other device in the
other.
     "Hey, Megsy!" Darkwing called out, flinging the buttered
toast at his adversary. "You forgot your order of toast to go!"
     The toast smacked into Megavolt's hands, spreading melted
butter around. Megavolt lost his grip on both items he held, and
they dropped to the floor.
     "Hey!" Megavolt started, looking at his hands. "I didn't
order butter on these!"
     Darkwing took advantage of the moment and whipped out his
Gasgun, setting it to "Gluebomb". He squeezed the trigger,
firing the glue canister out. Megavolt tried to move out of the
way, but slipped on the buttercovered floor and thudded to the
ground. As it turned out, this was fortunate for him, as the glue
bomb missed him and exploded on the wall behind the fallen
supervillain.
     Darkwing groaned.
     "Oh yeah, I meant to do that." Megavolt lied. He tried to
stand, but slipped again.
     "Okay, take two." Darkwing sighed, aiming his Gasgun at
Megavolt.
     "Why Darkwing," Megavolt's voice held an edge of
malevolence, "I believe I will."
     He snapped his fingers, and an electromagnetic surge
brought his Electrogun and the other device back to his hands.
He fired his Electrogun at the same time that Darkwing fired his
Gasgun. The bolt of lightning met the gluebomb halfway, causing
a curtain of superstrong glue to form between the two titans.
Megavolt's hands were still slippery, however, and he lost his
grip on the items again. At the same time, Darkwing glanced at
his watch. Less than a minute left.
     "I just can't cut a break!" They cried simultaneously.
     Megavolt ran an incredibly high charge through his gloves,
bathing the area around him in an electrifying field. The butter
was burnt off, leaving a stale smell in the air. Darkwing darted
around to one side of the glue curtain, where it hadn't reached,
and dashed through. He came up on Megavolt just as the
supervillain was regaining his feet.
     "I don't suppose you'd be willing to just give up now?"
Darkwing was desperate enough to ask.
     "Is this a trick question?" Megavolt responded honestly.
     "No."
     "Oh, well, no, not really. But thanks for asking."
     "Anytime." Darkwing grumbled. It was at this moment, when
they were both standing there, chatting civilly, that Darkwing's
gaze fell upon the second item Megavolt held. And he recognized
it.
     "The electrilizer!" He had forgotten all about it since the
last time he had seen it. He had dropped it off at SHUSH,
figuring they might be able to do something with it. Like destroy
it.
     "Yeah, it's what I came for." Megavolt answered. "Now I can
leave."
     The feathers on the back of Darkwing's neck began to rise
and he smelled something over the lingering smell of burnt
butter. The smell of ozone. His eyes darted back to Megavolt, who
was grinning unnaturally, a gleam of madness shining in his eyes,
with electricity springing forth from his plughelmet.
     Darkwing sensed the attack a splitsecond before it
happened. He threw himself to the floor as an enormous charge of
energy flew from Megavolt's plughelmet, narrowing missing
Darkwing. Even so, the top of Darkwing's hat was smoking from the
close shave.
     "Oh blast it!" Megavolt snapped. "Why'd you have to go and
spoil a perfectly good suckerpunch?"
     "That was not a punch, it was a death sentence, you
megalomaniacal madman!" Darkwing rolled for cover, cursing
himself for allowing Megavolt to build up a charge that strong.
He glanced at the wall where it had hitcorrection: Where the
wall _used_ to be. It had been totally vaporized by the blast.
     "Semantics." Megavolt grumbled, snapping the electrilizer
firmly into place in his chest socket. He turned it on, and
looked around for an outlet. Darkwing took a second to check his
watch. Ten seconds.
     He quickly weighed the options of rushing Megavolt on the
slim chance that he could surprise him and take him down before
he was roasted, and of taking the extra minutes to insure that
Megavolt was subdued with little or no injury to Darkwing, and
pay twenty bucks. But it was more than twenty dollars at risk for
Darkwing. It would be admitting that Grizzlikof was right. It
would be swallowing his pride. Darkwing knew the day he did that,
he would choke on it and die.
     So actually, since his pride was involved, it wasn't much of
a difficult decision. He sprang from his hiding place, making a
straight beeline for Megavolt.
     He was delighted to see that maybe this wasn't as suicidal
as he thought. Megavolt was busying adjusting the electrilizer
and preparing to jump.
     Five seconds.
     Megavolt pressed the final button, and his body shifted to
the electromagnetic pulse used in electrical byways. At the same
moment, Darkwing tackled him, knocking them both into a
nondescript machine in the corner. Megavolt's personal store of
electricity automatically brought the machine to life, it's red
lights flashing and sirens wailing. The two combatants struggled
in close confines, striking out blindly.
     Four seconds.
     One of them hit the "send" switch on the electrilizer, and
they both were sucked into the machine.
     Three seconds.
     Within the electronic flow of the machine, Darkwing and
Megavolt still struggled, unaware of their new surroundings.
Darkwing's brain, the section that actually looked out for the
safety and wellbeing of the body, was screaming at him about
something, but the section that held the ego was blocking any
communication with a well placed image of twenty dollars.
     Two.
     The machine started it's normal operations, but the
introduction of two unaccountable elements, namely Darkwing and
Megavolt, was causing problems. The machine liked everything to
be nice and organized, with all probabilities sorted and
accounted for. But these new two elements, and the havoc they
were causing within, was giving the machine the equivalent of
passing a gall stone.
     One.
     That annoying section of Darkwing's brain finally broke
through, distracting the ego with an image of an 8 1/2 by 11
glossy of itself. Darkwing froze, clinging to Megavolt like a
life preserver. This caused Megavolt to momentarily glance about.
     "Well," he said rather nonchalantly, "This wasn't in the
script I read."
     Zero.
     The machine exploded.

     It was a dark and stormy night. Or at least, it could have
been. After all, Professor Nimnul was working feverishly in his  
lab, without windows, so it might have been raining doughnuts 
for  all he knew. But dark and stormy nights often accompanied 
mad
scientists when they completed a project, so he assumed that one
was going on outside.
     He tightened the final bolts on his latest project, then
stepped back to admire his work. The metal gleamed in the well
lit interior of his hilltop lab, while various gauges and meters
measured power levels and desired output.
     "Ah," Nimnul sighed happily, "And thus another brilliant
invention of mine his ripened before my eyes, ready to be plucked
and used for utter chaos and domination." He stepped back a few
more paces, studying it once more, looking for anything that
might hint as a problem.
     But all was well. Satisfied, he nodded to himself, and
withdrew a remote control from his coat pocket. He tapped a
series of buttons, and the machine activated. It was a large,
fourlegged monstrosity, with two large metal wings protruding
from its sides. All in all, it looked like a dragon, constructed
entirely of steel. It stood easily twelve feet tall at the
shoulder, with a long neck capable of stretching out another
three feet. A tail curled around it, swishing slightly against
the stainless steel floor.
     Nimnul nodded to himself. With the metal dragon standing, he
went about his final checklist. All gauges were showing the
proper output levels, all biosynthetic limbs were receiving
signals from the internal CPU, and each armor scale was firmly
attached to the wire mesh insulator underneath.
     With a wide grin and spark of madness in his eyes, Professor
Nimnul gleeful dashed over to the main controls along the wall of
his lab. His hands flew over them, putting in the instructions
for its first test run. The metal dragon's eyes flared as the
incoming instructions were received, glowing with an eerie
facsimile of life. It raised its head towards the domed ceiling,
and launched upwards with bionic legs. It soared straight up, a
small but powerful pair of jet thrusters giving it more power
than the wings. It rammed through the ceiling to the night sky,
its armor unscathed, not even scratched.
     Below, Nimnul was upset.
     "Oh forwhy didn't I think to put in an exit big enough for
the dragon?" He sighed and shook his head, looking at the pile of
rubble now on the ground. "Oh well. I suppose now's a good as
time as any."
     He felt better about it as he programmed a few other robots
to begin the repair and building of a skylight. His spirits were
further boosted to see that it was indeed a dark and stormy night
out.

     Lightning flashed across the sky, causing the rangers to
gulp as one. The dark storm clouds loomed overhead, giving them a
distinct feeling of being small and insignificant. Their tiny
Ranger Plane continued along the whipping winds, fighting to
remain steady.
     "Uh, Gadgetluv," Monterey said, glancing at the clouds,
"I've never been a backseat driver before, but uh, do you think
that you could step on it a wee bit?"
     "I'm going as fast I can, Monty." Gadget answered,
struggling with the controls. Her eyes were focused on the sky in
front of her, protected from the wind by her goggles. "But the
storm is covering the whole city, so no matter where we go, it'll
be all around us."
     "Maymaybe we should land then." Dale stammered. He had just
witnessed another lightning bolt, and was having bad visions
about the Ranger Plane getting hit by one.
     Chip grimaced as thunder boomed from all around them.
"That's not such a bad idea, Dale. Gadget? Can you land us
somewhere safe? We can get home after the storm abates."
     Gadget nodded. "Probably. But take a look around. I don't
see anywhere really safe."
     She motioned with her head to the open fields below. Nothing
but open fields for as far as the eye could see. Gadget estimated
it would take them at least another ten minutes before they were
close to the city.
     "We should have brought the Ranger Wing." She stated as
another lightning bolt lit up the sky. "We could have been home
by now, safe and warm."
     "Hindsight is 2020, luv." Monterey replied. "We all thought
that the Ranger Plane would be best for the last case."
     Zipper buzzed, gripping Monterey's shoulder tightly to avoid
begin tossed from the plane or snatched away by the wind.
Monterey nodded to Zipper.
     "Yeah, mate, it was right for the case." He dug his fingers
into the seat as the plane was buffeted by another gust of wind.
"But that doesn't help us much now, does it?" He groaned.
     Chip pulled down his hat tightly, keeping one hand on it. He
scanned the countryside, hoping to spot an overhang, or gopher
hole even, anything to provide some shelter. This storm was
tugging at all the wrong strings in him for some reason. It
merely felt...unnatural.
     Dale, too, was frantically searching the ground below, but
he was looking for something soft to land on in case a bolt of
lightning did strike. The softest thing he could find was a pile
of rocks, and he didn't quite believe it would work any better
than the ground. Sighing, anxiety in his voice, he sat back and
looked out across the sky. Another flash of lightning shot out,
and he thought he heard an explosion of some kind.
     "Did anyone else hear that?" He asked, sitting up.
     "What? Thunder?" Chip asked.
     "No, it was...quieter than that. And sounded more like
something breaking. Like rocks or something."
     Zipper nodded in agreement, having heard it as well. He
crawled out onto the edge of the plane and pointed off in the
distance. The rest of the rangers looked over, and saw the lights
of the city in the distance. But Zipper wasn't pointing to that,
as they found out. Gadget brought the plane around for a better  
look.
     The flew around the edge of a rocky hill, and saw with
dismay what Zipper was getting at. They all recognized Professor
Nimnul's hilltop lab. The large geodesic globe with those large
pipes sprouting out and digging into the rocks was hard to
forget. What's worse, they all saw the large hole in the top of
the globe, with a light coming from within. It appeared the
Professor was at home.
     Chip was about to say something, when a movement caught his
eye. He turned his head just lightning danced across the sky,
shedding a strong light across the sky for a fraction of a
second. Chip's jaw dropped as he saw a silhouette of a dragon
flying off towards the city.
     The rest of rangers were more interested in the hole in
Nimnul's lab. Things could be seen moving within. Gadget was
already bringing the plane in closer for a better view of the
inside.
     "Wait!" Chip cried as the plane twisted away from the
dragon.
     "What is it?" Dale asked, looking over in the direction that
Chip was gaping at. But without the lightning's illumination,
nothing was visible except darkness.
     "II mean, I saw...I think..." Chip stuttered. He craned
his neck, but still couldn't see any sign of...of whatever it was
that he saw. If I saw anything at all, he thought gloomily. He
sat back down in his seat. "I thought I saw something over
there." He finally managed. "But I don't see anything now."
     "Well, let's check this out first." Monterey suggested. He
leaned over and peered down into the lab. "I doubt we'll get
another opportunity to see what Nimnul's up to before he springs
it on the world."
     "Right." Gadget nodded. "Hang on, guys, I think I can get
through that hole with minimal difficulty."
     They were about to ask what she meant exactly by "minimal
difficulty" when she thrust the wheel forward, bringing the
Ranger Plane down into a steep dive. Glad that they had the
foresight to install their safety belts, the rangers hung on
tightly as Gadget brought the plane down through the hole, only
slightly tearing the balloon.
     The ride to the floor was quick, but thrilling, as the
rangers watched the world dip, spin at blinding speed, and
generally do things that only happen after a serious blow to the
head. It came to an abrupt end as the floor suddenly lurched up
to met them. Blackness shrouded over the entire group.
     "Ah!" Dale cried. "We're dead!"
     "Impossible." Monterey said from somewhere to his right.
"The dead don't get sick." There was a gagging sound, followed by
a hand being slapped over a mouth.
     "Monty's right, Dale." Gadget answered calmly. For her, this
landing really wasn't that different from some of her others.
"The punctured balloon must've landed on top of us."
     "Lucky us." Chip said in a dazed voice.
     A weak buzz from Zipper agreed with Chip.
     "Well, let's get out from under here." Chip managed to state
in much steadier voice. His eyes had stopped flashing colors, and
he was pretty sure that his stomach was back in its proper place.
"If Nimnul is around, the last thing we want is to alert him of
our presence."
     "Hey!" A familiar voice called from beyond the darkness.
"What's that balloon and bleach bottle doing here? I thought I
told Normie to pick up his toys when he was done with them."
     "Too late." Dale mumbled weakly.
     "Look at the bright side, guys." Gadget's voice said. "We
wanted to see what Nimnul was up to. This just speeds the process
along."
     "Yeah." Monterey answered. "But I'd prefer it to be from a
safe distance."
     "Oh...well, you can't win them all."
     Chip and Dale had managed to unfasten their seat belts, and
crawled over to the edge of the plane. Together, they carefully
pushed up the balloon to see what they could see. A wall greeted
them.
     "Wrong side." Dale muttered. Chip rolled his eyes and
nodded.
     A small shaft of light came from the other side as Gadget
and Monterey pushed the balloon up on their side. The rangers
cringed at the sight before them.
     They were inside of the lab, apparently far off from the
center of the huge room. The spied at least ten to fifteen robots
moving about. They were cleaning up the rubble, and others were
doing something with the hole that the rangers had passed
through. What made them cringe, however, was the appearance of
the robots. Each one of them looked like some type of monster.
     In all honesty, this wasn't a big surprise. The rangers had
encountered robots Nimnul had built before. Whether they were
giant bulldogs or huge guinea pigs, they always looked user
unfriendly. But these...these weren't even trying for that
standard. Dale, being a big fan of fantasy fiction, recognized
several of them.
     "Look over there," he whispered, nudging Chip, "It's a
troll. And there's a goblin. I think that one's supposed to be
some sort of orc, or maybe an ogre." Chip could feel his friend
shudder. "They look pretty sinister, even if they aren't the real
things. At least he didn't try a dragon."
     "Dragon..." Chip let it sink in. "He did Dale. That's what I
saw, flying off towards the city. One of them is out there now."
His face was rather solemn.
     "But why?" Dales asked. "Why design them like this?"
     "I don't know that, mates." Monterey quickly interjected.
"But I do know we had better do something quick, or we may get a
closer look at these robots than we planned on." He motioned up
at the approaching figure of Nimnul, striding closer, mumbling
something about Normie and if his parents would return soon from
that two week vacation they took over a year ago.
     Chip took a moment to gather in their surrounds. "Okay...I
got an idea."
     Nimnul stepped down and picked up the plane, then stood back
up with it wearing a frown. "Where have I seen this before?" He
asked himself. He pulled the deflated balloon off of the it,
still studying the plane intently. Thus, he never noticed the
five tiny figures clinging to the underside of the balloon.
Zipper immediately flew off and out of sight. The rest of the
rangers had to wait until Nimnul tossed the balloon over his
shoulder before the could let go. They all landed with varying
degrees of gracefulness on the floor, then moved off to under one
of the worktables.
     Nimnul knew he had seen something like this before, but he
couldn't recall where. Finally, he just shrugged and tossed to
plane into a trash can on his way back to supervise the new
skylight construction.
     Chip watched with a frown. "This does not bode well for the
visiting forces." He stated.
     "Huh?" Was the choral response.
     "I mean, things have gone from bad to worse. We're stuck in
the lab of one of our worse enemies, Nimnul is obviously up to
another scheme, and one of his inventions is already on its way
to city, for who knows what reason." He sighed. "Not exactly the
way i like to start out a case."
     "Well," Gadget said, moving forward to see the Ranger Plane,
"I can fix our transportation soon enough. We can probably be out
of here before too long."
     Zipper tapped Chip on the shoulder. His expression seemed to
say, Give me a few minutes, and I can scout out what he's up to.
With that, the spirited fly took off.
     "Hey Chip, cast your peepers over there." Monterey pointed
over to the other side of the lab, where a large computer sat.
Among the numerous switches, buttons, and dials, were a series of
monitors. A couple of them were displaying some readouts of what
appeared to be a metal dragon, and one was a moving view of the
city from a bird's eye view. Or more appropriately, a dragon's
eye view.
     "Now this," Chip said with a grin, "is how I like to start a
case."
     With that, the rangers broke off into two groups. Monterey
went off with Gadget to see about getting the Ranger Plane ready,
while Chip and Dale headed off for the large computer.
     The two chipmunks carefully made their way across the lab,
staying far away from the robots and Nimnul. Fortunately, they
were too preoccupied in the construction around the hole to
notice two small furry mammals scamper over onto the control
panel of the computer.
     "Oh man," Dale stepped back, intimated by the huge device.
"Where do we start, Chip? It's like a maze."
     "I know." Chip glanced about, but had no clue as to what
function keys did what.
     They crawled up the slanting surface to the monitors.
     "Whew, television." Dale sounded relieved. "This, I can
handle."
     "It's not television, Dale." Chip said as he stepped up next
to him. "This is what the dragon is seeing. See? Look at the
angle."
     Dale shrugged. "Well, the skills I developed when watching
T.V. can apply here."
     "What skills?"
     "Uh...the ability to watch it for over six hours straight?"
     "Very helpful, Dale." Chip said sarcastically. "You want to
wait around here for six hours?"
     "Well, if the programs are good..."
     "They aren't programs, Nuthead! It's a camera, so unless it
suddenly decides to stop by the Late Show for a while, you won't
be seeing anything of interest."
     "Well..." Dale tried to think of a defense. Fortunately, the
monitor provided it for him. "I'd call _that_ interesting." He
stated triumphantly, pointing to the screen.
     Chip looked and saw that the dragon had entered a building
of some kind. Flames shot out from the top of the screen and down
the hall, driving the people within back. Chip and Dale watched
with a mix of fascination and fear as the dragon stormed down the
hallway, blasting it's way through any obstacle in it's way. The
security guards attempted to shot it, but the resounding sounds
of ricochet told the chipmunks how effective it was.
     The dragon turned suddenly and burst through a series of
doors until it came to a large, metal vault. A pair of lasers
began to cut the hinges off.
     "What do you think's in there?" Dale asked, unable to tear
his eyes away.
     "I don't know," Chip answered, equally mesmerized. "But I do
know that if Nimnul wants it, we have to stop this dragon of
his."
     He shook his head and looked around. Too many possible
functions greeted him as he scanned the control panel. He grabbed
Dale and spun him from the monitor. The Dragon had finished
cutting the hinges off and was moving inside in the darkened
room, it's starlight sensors amplifying the existing light for
better vision.
     "Listen," Chip said quickly, "we have to stop that thing.
Any ideas of where to start on here?"
     "Well," Dale considered the control panel quickly. "Whenever
I play a video game, I use a joystick to control the figure on
the screen."
     Chip nodded. "As good a place to start as any. Quick; split
up and search for something that might be a joystick."
     The dragon had stopped in front of a large, electronic wall
unit. It's tail came into view, protruding a small connecter. It
plugged into an I/O port, and the unit clicked to life.
As they raced over the control panel, Chip glanced back to see
the words, "Beginning download" flash across the screen. A small
digital display began counting down from 60 seconds.
     "Hurry Dale!" Chip called out. "We have a time limit now!"
     Dale was darting past rows of switches, but hadn't seen
anything yet, and was beginning to doubt on existed. He paused, a
feeling that he was forgetting something tugged at him. He looked
about again, and saw what it was. Most computers used a separate
joystick, usually off to the side of the main controls. He ran
down to the section he thought it would be in, and spotted a
joystick down at the corner.
     "Chip!" he called out, "It's over here!"
     He hopped on it, pulled the stick back. But nothing was
happening on the monitor.
     "What's wrong?" Chip asked. He had also noted that lack of
response from the dragon. He also noted that the counter was down
to thirty seconds.
     "I don't know. It isn't working!" Dale jerked the stick all
the back, but still no response.
     Chip spotted a blinking red button in front of the joystick.
"Wait, maybe we need to tell the computer what it is we want to
control, first."
     "Huh?"
     "A selection button, Dale." Chip responded as he stepped
down on the button. He glowed red, and another electronic display
in front of Chip flashed the word "Orc". A shout from behind them
told them they were now controlling a robot, but not the one the
wanted. Chip stepped repeatedly one the button, scrolling through
a variety of robots.
     "What?!" They heard Nimnul cry out from behind them. "What's
going on with the control panel?"
     "Chipper! Hurry! He's heading over here!"
     Chip increased his stepping, until the word "Dragon"
appeared.
     "Got it!" he announced.
     Sure enough, the view on the monitor suddenly showed the
ceiling getting closer and closer, followed by another ceiling,
than another...
     "What's happening?" Dale asked, still holding the joystick
back.
     "I'm not sure. I think you're telling it to take off."
     They watched as the dragon rammed it's way through ceiling
after ceiling, finally breaking out into the night sky. The view
shook a little, and sort of quavered, hovering.
     "Why isn't it climbing?" Dale asked.
     "Look!" Chip pointed over to another monitor showing the
readout of the dragon.
Across the bottom, they read, "Overloaded. Suggested dumping of
excess weight."
     "It never unplugged from the wall unit! It must have pulled
it all the way up through the ceilings. No wonder, look at that."
He pointed to the tail section of the readout. "The connecter was
fused in from the sudden surge of our transmission."
     "So what do we do now?"
     Chip looked over his shoulder to see Nimnul with a raised
mallet, about the crush Dale. "Run!"
     Dale caught Chip's warning just in time. He let go of the
joystick and dodged back as the mallet smashed into the spot
where he was a splitsecond later. The joystick handle was
snapped off and sparks flew from the exposed wiring.
     Chip ran down, and grabbed Dale, pulling him back up and
away from Nimnul, was readying for a second attack. None of them
notice the warnings flashing across the screens.
     The digital readout was till running, however, and had
reached five seconds.
     Dale yelled out a warning as Nimnul lunged again. The mallet
crashed down directly in front of Chip, bashing in buttons and
snapping off switches. More sparks flew, and a discreet smoke
seeped out from the sides of the machine.
     Four seconds.
     Seeing Nimnul pulling back again, Chip pointed to the newly
opened hole in the control panel. Dale nodded, and they both
quickly ducked inside, nimbly dodging sparks and exposed wires.
They ran up towards the top of the machine, where Chip guessed
there would be a vent they could get through.
     Three seconds.
     With the chipmunks no longer in sight, Nimnul had a moment
to see the damage he had inadvertently caused. The dragon was
still trying to fly with the large unit attached to its tail, and
the whole computer used to control his robots was in danger of
going up in smoke.
     Two.
     For all of the talk of Nimnul being insane, never let it be
said that the man is an idiot. He quickly activated the emergency
coolant system, flushing the interior with a fire suppressive
gas. He entered a quick series of commands in the control panel
that was still functioning, causing the dragon to detach its'
tail completely. He watched on the city scanner as the dragon
began its flight back, and the unit and tail plummeted to the
ground below.
     One.
     "Do you hear that?" Chip was about to ask Dale, but the
hissing jumped to roar as the gas shot through the computer's
internal structure. Both of the chipmunks blacked out instantly.
     Zero.
     The unit, still running, hit the city street and exploded.
     But not before it finished it's final computation.

     Somewhere, in an infinite realm of possibilities, there
exists a single chance. The chance that two totally
circumstantial events will have exactly the same result at
exactly the same time. The chances of it happening are perhaps
once every billion years. The chance for this particular billion
years was now cashed in.

--Chapter 2: This had better not be Oz, either.--

     Thunder was the first sound heard. The next was the rush of
air. Darkwing's world snapped back into focus like a gunshot as
his body shifted from the electrilizer's effects back to it's
normal state. He began aware of the sensation of freefall. As
his vision gradually focused, he saw that he was indeed
plummeting towards the ground.
     He quickly took in the city belowhe had to be at least
1,000 feet up, probably more. His first thought was that the
explosion had blown them skyhigh, but he quickly realized that
this was not St. Canard. No Autobahn Bay Bridge, not even a body
of water. None of the skyscrapers in the center of the city. A
gnawing fear edged into his stomach.
     The fear was easily suppressed, however, by the very up
front fact that unless he did something, he would soon become
Darkwing Pressed Duck. He looked around, and spotted Megavolt
alongside of him, seeming to enjoy it.
     "Cool!" He exclaimed. "I always wanted to try skydiving!"
     "Without parachutes, it's called skydying!" Darkwing
snapped back.
     Megavolt blinked and gulped. "Oh yeah." He began to promptly
scream.
     Darkwing grumbled, upset. Not that Megavolt was screaming in
fear, but because he hadn't thought of it first. Well, with
strict terror out of the way, cool logic stepped up to bat.
     Maybe I can snag a building with a plunger from my Gasgun,
he thought. Looking around, he noted that they were falling down
towards what appeared to be a junkyard. One tall building was
within range. But as reached for his Gasgun, he remembered that
he was out of plungers, due to Gosalyn's science project (you
don't want to know).
     Strike one.
     How about using my cape as a parachute? He thought suddenly.
He grabbed the edges of the cape and spread it out, only to see
ribbons flap uselessly in the wind. The explosion had shredded
his cape.
     Strike two.
     Wait! Launchpad dropped me off in the Thunderquack, maybe
he's close enough for a pickup! His face brightened with hope as
he dug out his radio and attempted to reach his sidekick. Static
was all the response he got. The he remembered that it looked
like they were transferred to a different city. This could be  
Ducksburg, for all he knew. Whatever the case, Launchpad was out 
 of range.
     Cool logic, having struck out, went back to the bench as
total panic came in to pitchhit.
     "AAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Darkwing screamed.
     Startled by someone else screaming, Megavolt was drawn out
of his fear. "Oh, well, if you're to handle the fear part..." He
shrugged, and looked down. The ground was rising up rapidly; he
only had a few seconds.
     Megavolt made a quick adjustment to his Electrogun, send
out a series of rapidfire burst of varying electromagnetic
frequencies. The waves resounded off of the ground back up at the
falling pair. Megavolt set up another field of energy around him
(and Darkwing, but whether this was on purpose or not remains a
matter of debate), one of equal polarity. The natural "push"
created by two like magnets was recreated here, but this time on
a much larger scale. It would have normally been enough to stop
the fall.
     But for some reason, all it did was manage to slow their
decent, fortunately enough so the when the landed on the rubbish
heap, they were only bruised instead of flattened. Megavolt
bounced off down the pile of garbage, with Darkwing tumbling
right behind him. They crashed rather forcefully into a
collection of old tires at the bottom of the hill, bouncing off
more forcefully than they were used to.
     Groaning, Darkwing sat up and glanced about. He was glad to
see that his hat was still with him, albeit rather worse for
wear. Another clap of thunder reverberated throughout the sky,
and a few bolts of lightning playfully arced from cloud to cloud.
Off to his right, he could see the glow of the city. What city,
he wasn't sure. To his left, he spotted a small shack, apparently
a residence of the caretaker of this place. A dog was barking
from within, and Darkwing could see movement inside. Someone
would be out some enough. And directly in front of him...
     Megavolt groaned and raised his head. His eyes were even
more unfocused than normal, and Darkwing could hear his
adversary's ragged breath.
     "Oh...that was a painful way to land." He said weakly.
     "Better than what would have happened." Darkwing replied. He
stood up, and walked warily towards the downed supervillain.
"Just stay put. You may have saved our lives, but you cost me
twenty dollars." Among other things, he thought bitterly. "The
cops will be here as soon as the civilian realizes who's in their
backyard."
     As if on cue, the door to the simple dwelling opened up, and
the civilian stepped out. Both Darkwing and Megavolt looked up to
the figure stepping out into the light of the lampposts along the
junkyard. And as one, both their jaws and hearts dropped.
     The person was just that. A person. Not a duck, dog, cat, or
even a dog/rat/weasel type thing (Megavolt has yet to met another
of his kind). He had no beak or snout, but a simple nose, two
rather small (to them) eyes, and _five_ fingers on each hand. The
human panicked and ran back indoors upon seeing them. Darkwing
and Megavolt might have panicked too, but they had seen humans
before. The last time the electrilizer send them through to
another dimension.
     The gnawing fear in Darkwing's stomach quickly grew to a
ravenous hunger which threatened to consume him. "Oh no..." He
swallowed hard. "Not this place. Not again!"
     Megavolt shakily got back to his feet. "No...it can't be.
Not this nightmare again. Stuck in a world of weirdnosed
people." His eyes widened with a sudden fear. "With no way home
this time."
     Darkwing fought back the fear long enough to think clearly.
"No, wait. We've gotten out of this mess before, we can do it
again." His confidence restored, he straightened up. "Yeah, I
mean, I'm famous here. A wellknown television personality."
     "A _cartoon_ personality." Megavolt corrected him.
     Darkwing glared at Megavolt. "Whatever. Regardless, I am
still more famous and respected here than back home. The Rockwell
guy will be willing to help us out. Assuming his helmet is still
functioning, we can use that to get back home."
     "I don't know." Megavolt frowned. "You may have been
hobnobbing with the industry last time, but I was searching for a
way home. I had to look around to find that antenna we used, and
don't remember any of this." He waved his hands in the direction
of the city.
     "Hey, there was a lot of city we never saw. Besides, it's
your electrilizer. Why wouldn't have transported us back to the
same place?"
     "Because those dweebs at SHUSH were messing around with it."
     "Huh?" Darkwing knew the dweebs at SHUSH. This was not good
news.
     "I noticed it when I was setting the frequency. I found it
in that one room, out on a table with some notes around it. It
looked like they were trying to establish contact with another
dimension. When I was adjusting it, I was trying to figure out
exactly what they did to it."
     "Well? What was it?"
     "I don't know. I was interrupted by an unnamed party in a
purple outfit. And I don't mean the artist formerly known as
Price."
     Darkwing merely cleared his throat and looked around for a
distraction. His prayers were in answered in the form of sirens.
They were faint, but quickly grew louder. Darkwing and Megavolt
could see the red and blue lights flashing across the area as the
sounds of several police cars pulled up along the junkyard.
     Darkwing breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay, here's the plan.
Let me do all the talking. They should recognize me from our last
time here, and give us a lift to Rockwell."
     "Either that, or a rock cell." Megavolt replied, glancing  
about nervously.
     "Will you calm down? What could possibly go wrong?"
     Megavolt fixed him with a stare. "I can't believe you had
the brazenness to say that."
     Darkwing shrugged. "It's in the job description." He stepped
up to the front.
     The police began a slow and careful move into the junkyard.
Several officers held out searchlights, while the rest snuck down
around piles of trash, guns drawn.
     "Hail, good police!" Darkwing proclaimed, stepping up into a
spotlight. "It is I, Darkwing Duck, champion of justice, prince
of protection, and the terror the flaps in the night. You no
doubt recognize me from my cart"
     "What the heck is it?!" Someone cried.
     "Beats me, but it looks dangerous. Keep your distance, men."
     "Yeah, look how it's dressed. No one sane dresses like
that!"
     Megavolt snorted from behind Darkwing. "See? I'm not the
only one who thinks so."
     "Shut up!" Darkwing hissed, then turned back to the police.
"Hey guys, don't you remember me? I'm the superhero from that
cartoon, you know? Haven't you bought my merchandise for your
kids, yet?"
     "It's obviously insane," the lead officer called out. "Get
out the tranquilizer gun."
     Megavolt began a slow withdraw from the scene, looking for
possible escape routes. but the police had the area surrounded.
"Well, Darkwing, any other bright ideas?"
     "Well, just one." Darkwing glanced nervously at the closing
circle of police, and the ones bringing out the tranquilizer
guns. He palmed one oh his smoke canisters. "RUN!" He shouted and
he threw the canister down. Blue smoke exploded outward,
obscuring Darkwing and Megavolt from the police. They dived for
cover at the explosion, then peeked around carefully, confirming
that is was only a smoke grenade.
     "Move in!" The captain commanded.
     They all quickly closed in, but no sign of the two intruders
was evident anyway. They had obviously escaped during the decoy
grenade.
     "Start an area search, they couldn't have gotten far." He
told the officers, then went to his car and radioed in. "Put out
the word that we have two unknown trespassers at large. I need a
sketch artist down here pronto. They look like nothing I've ever
seen. And tell the commissioner." He turned off the radio and
looked skyward and the looming storm clouds. "I have a feeling
that our problems have only just begun," he muttered to himself.

     "What's going on over there, Zipper?" Monterey called out.
He and Gadget had managed to pull the Ranger Plane free from the
trash can, shoving it over to the floor below. They had just
finished that when they saw the sparks flying from over by the
computer. Zipper had swooped in, frantically buzzing something.
     Zipper took a moment to calm down, then went into a quick
explanation of Chip and Dale ducking inside the computer, but not
coming out.
     "Crikey!" Monterey turned to Gadget. "We've got to get them
out of there, but how? And the Ranger Plane isn't even fixed
yet!"
     "You and Zipper get Chip and Dale, then get them over here."
She rolled her sleeves up the way up and brought her goggles down
over her eyes, a determined glint in them. "The Ranger Plane
_will_ be ready to fly by the time you get back." She stated it
as a fact, not a hope.
     Monterey nodded and slid down the side of the trash can,
then made his way over to the computer, Zipper flying just
overhead, keeping watch. The robots had gone back to their
construction, and Nimnul was engrossed in running a diagnostic on
the computer, so the Monterey and Zipper arrived at the side of
the computer without incident.
     Crouching down beside the side of the computer, Monterey
watched as Nimnul worked the control panel, trying to isolate the
problems internally before having to actually open it up.
Monterey checked around the side of the machine, but he didn't
see any way in, and mentioned it to Zipper.
     Nodding, Zipper motioned for Monterey to wait below as he
flew up to see if he could find a way in. He sped up the side of
the computer, finally coming to the top. He spotted the twin,
large grates for ventilation right away. The grill was spaced
more than wide enough for him to slip in unhindered.
     The insides of the computer were dark, aside from the
occasional sparking wire. Zipper managed to navigate through the
maze of circuitboards, until he thought he spotted some objects
that looked more organic, as opposed to the geometric shapes that
surround him. A quick beat of his wings brought him to the two
downed rangers.
     Landing next to them, Zipper first checked to make sure that
each was still alive. He was relieved to see them breathing in
slow, rhythmic slumber. Next, Zipper set about waking them up. No
way he could haul them back up to the top, and he doubted their
would be time to get Monterey before Nimnul opened the computer
up to start the hardware repairs.
     Having to revive the chipmunks before, Zipper knew the best
and quickest way: he flew behind them, grabbed each of their
tales and pulled back, letting them snap back into their rears.
     "Erg!" Or something to that effect was the chipmunks
response as the awoke with a start. They didn't have time to ask
questions, however, as Zipper darted back in front of them,
explaining their precarious positions. Chip and Dale nodded, and
followed Zipper back through the computer to the vents. They had
a bit more trouble squeezing through the grill, but with some
addition pull by Zipper, they managed to pop through and then
shimmy back down the side to join Monterey.
     "Glad to see you blokes are still okay." He said as they
dropped down next to him.
     "Thanks Monty," Dale responded. "Is the plane finished yet?"
     Chip nodded. "I think we had better get out of here quick.
Nimnul spotted us messing with his computer." He glanced back
nervously at the fuming Professor, currently removing the control
panel. "It won't be long before he comes after us again."
     "Gadget said it'd be ready." Monterey answered. "What's
going on with him?"
     "I'm not sure yet." Chip admitted. "He's built these robots
for a purpose, and looks like he's using them for remotecontrol
theft, but I think there's more to it than that."
     "Look," Dale cut in, keeping an eye on Nimnul, "can we
discuss this later? Preferably after we're on the Plane and on
our way away from here?"
     Monterey shrugged. "Can't argue with the lad's logic."
     Chip was about to state the he could, but the rest of the
group and already left. Sighing, he quickly took up the rear.
     Back at the trash can, they could see Gadget hammering away
at one side of the Plane. She finished, then looked up at the
rest of them with a smile.
     "All set." She announced proudly.
     The Ranger Plane was did look back to normal, aside from the
missing balloon. Looking it over, they could see that Gadget had
built a quick slingshot rig out of the balloon, aiming up at the
hole they had entered. The four rangers exchanged glances.
     Gadget walked back around to the front of the plane, and
pushed against it. It shifted a little, but not much.
     "Um...could someone give me a hand?" She asked, somewhat
sheepishly. "I need to get this into place." She pointed to the
area in front of the slingshot.
     Chip and Dale each stepped up next to her, one on each side,
while Monterey and Zipper guided it by the sides. Together, they
slid the Plane into place, then climbed up into the seats.
     "Um...Gadget?" Chip asked tentatively, watching the robots
work around the hole. "I have a important question: Do you think
that those robots might pose a problem for our escape?"
     "No."
     "Oh." He didn't sound reassured.
     "I guess it wasn't as important as you thought." Dale
suggested helpfully.
     "Everyone strapped in?" Gadget asked. "Hang guys, it'll be a
little bumpy for the first minute or so."
     "There's an understatement." Monterey muttered. He was
eyeing the hole, rig, and hoping that the laws of physics would
be merciful on them.
     With a sudden *click*, Gadget released the pressure valve on
the wings. They started to rise, triggering the release on the
slingshot. The entire Ranger Plane was propelled through the air
and a tremendous velocity, forcing the rangers back in their
seats. The robots around the hole were working solely on the area
around hole, so the Ranger Plane managed to exit without any
difficulty.
     "You did it, Gadget!" Chip called out, twisting around to
see the hole growing smaller behind them.
     "Yeah, Gadgetluv," Monterey agreed, "I gotta hand it to you
on this one." He was still amazed that it had actually worked,
but wisely decided to keep that to himself.
     "Thanks, guys." Gadget replied, concentrating on her
piloting. "Now if I can just glide us to the ground, we'll be
okay. Did you boys find out what Nimnul was up to?"
     "Yes and no." Chip replied. "He's using the robots to commit
robberies for him, but I think there's something more to it than
that."
     "Why?" Dale asked.
     "Well, you saw what the dragon was doing, Dale. It was
downloading something from that unit we saw." He frowned and sat
back, thinking. "My guess is that Nimnul was gathering
information or data about something."
     "A bank, maybe?" Monterey suggested. "He's done research to
rob banks before."
     Zipper pointed out that Nimnul had hit more than banks.
Jewelry stores, warehouses, and the like.
     "Right, Zipper." Chip looked out over the cityscape. "If we
could find out what building the dragon invaded, I'll bet it'll
tell us what Nimnul was after."
     "Shouldn't be too hard," Monterey shrugged. "Just follow the
wreckage."
     By this time, Gadget had brought the Ranger Plane into a
slow spiral downwards, finally landing it smoothly in a small
field. The rangers were still a distance from the city, but they
were much closer then before. The storm had seemed to quell for
the moment, but Chip feared that it was merely the eye of the
storm, and more turbulence was coming soon.
     "Hey," Dale said as he climbed out of the plane, "look over
there." He pointed to the distant city. The others all listened
as they climbed out, and peered in the direction Dale indicated.
     Not too far away, in what they knew to be a rundown section
along the edge of town, they could see some flashes of light.
Almost like fireworks, but these lights glowed, rather than
burst. A few moments later, and the wind carried the sounds
gunfire, explosions, and sirens to them.
     "What do you suppose is going on?" Monterey asked, wide
eyed. "Maybe something with that unit the Nimnul was messing
with?"
     "No, that was in the center of the city." He watched for a
moment more. "Whatever it is, it sounds real serious."
     The rest of the rangers nodded. They all knew that they
should go investigate, to see if they could help out in some way,
but each of them had an uneasy feeling settle around them. Chip
was the first to shake out of it, and headed off towards the
commotion, the rest of the rangers right on his heels.

--Chapter 3: Chipmunks & Mice & Dog/Rat/Weasel Type Things, Oh  
My!--

     The police had caught up with Darkwing and Megavolt much
sooner than they had anticipated. Still disoriented from the
effects of the electrilizer, compounded by the discovery that
they had jumped dimensions again, they weren't thinking too
clearly as they escaped the junkyard. Instead of keeping to the
shadows, they seemed quite content to run madly down the welllit
streets. The call had gone out on the police radios, and the area
search was quick and methodical. Soon the suspects in question
were spotted around a corner, and it wasn't long before the
police started to herd them in.
     In addition to all their other problems, both Megavolt and
Darkwing noticed that something seemed...strange...about this
dimension. They felt almost out of sync with what was happening
around them, but the feeling was impossible to pin down as they
were running for their lives.
     In mere minutes they found themselves surrounded again, this
time in the center of an intersection. Police cars were all
around, and more arriving each minute.
     "Now what?" Darkwing asked breathlessly. He and Megavolt
stood back to back against the encroaching officers. Guns had
already been drawn, but none fired.
     "Personally, I hate feeling like a rat in a cage!" Megavolt
snarled.
     Because his timing was never in tune with etiquette,
Darkwing turned to face Megavolt. "I thought you were a rat,
genetically speaking."
     Because his timing was even worse in situations like this,
Megavolt uncertainly answered, "I'm...not...sure, really. Last I
heard, I was a dog/rat/weasel type thing, but I still have people
looking into it."
     A bullhorn cut into their supervillaingenealogy discussion.
     "All right you two." The captain said, his amplified voice
echoing from the buildings around them. "Just stay put, and don't
cause any trouble. Nobody here wants any confrontation."
     "Speak for yourself..." Megavolt muttered, his eyes
narrowing. Darkwing, who was once again backtoback with his
archenemy, missed this.
     "So just relax, and come along with us peacefully," the
captain continued, "and no one will get hurt." He turned to one
of his officers. "How long before the S.W.A.T. team gets here?"
     "Shouldn't be too long, sir. They're bringing the gas bombs,
but I don't know if it'll work on _those_." He shuddered a little
as he looked at them. "What are they, anyway?"
     "I don't know. Maybe deformed humans, or deformed creatures
of some kind. Maybe aliens for all I know. What I _do_ know is
that I want them tucked away somewhere far from a populated area.
Then we can start answering your questions."
     He brought the bullhorn back up to address the...things. He
had noticed that the taller of the two was glowing a little.
"Okay, you in the yellow jumpsuit, cease and decessit whatever it
is you're doing."
     Megavolt's scowl deepened. And his glow brightened.
     "Megavolt," Darkwing hissed over his shoulder, "what are you
doing?" He didn't want to turn his back on the twenty or so cops
facing him down with drawn weapons.
     The captain started to get agitated. "Hey! I said knock it
off!" Still no response. Frustrated, the captain resorted to
namecalling. "Hey wattbrain! I'm talking to you, Sparky!"
     "DON'T CALL ME SPARKY!" Megavolt's screech pierced the air.
     A bolt of lightning pierced the same air a moment later,
directly hitting the police car in front of the captain. Metal
was ripped apart and glass shattered in a thousand directions as
it exploded. The officer next to the captain found himself on the
ground over twenty feet away, stars dancing before his eyes.
     "Strange," he muttered, dazed. "I thought the storm was
over." Shouts and screams quickly brought him back to his senses.
He could see past the burning wreck of twisted metal that used to
be a police car the one who had been glowing, throwing out bolts
of lightning, exploding cars and scattering officers. He turned
back to the captain to point this out, but the captain was lying
face down on the cement, his body still smoking.
     "Oh no..." he whispered as he crawled over to the captain,
feeling for a pulse.
     It was there, but faint.
     Thanking whatever forces had kept the captain alive, he
turned and looked around, finally finding his partner. "Hey
Muldoon!"
     Muldoon stopped his run from the newest fire, and quickly
altered his course to take him over to his partner.
     "What is it, Kirby? Gaaaa, you don't look so good."
     "Take an exploding car in the front and see how you feel.
But come on, we have to get the captain out of here. He's still
alive, but I don't know for how much longer."
     Seeing the state of the captain, Muldoon nodded. He glanced
around quickly, seeing that the whole operation had gone up in
smoke, literally. Officers were trying to take cover from the
lightningthrowing attacker, while others were trying to provide
covering fire. None of the bullets seemed to hit the attacker,
however, so it wasn't very effective, but it least he was staying
put.
     "Wait here." Muldoon said and then made a quick duckandrun
to the nearest working police car. He climbed in and started it
up, then quickly sped over to the area with Kirby and the
captain. Other officers saw this, and kept Megavolt's attention
drawn away, more so with taunts than actual gunfire. In
particular, he seemed to react vehemently to the name "Sparky"...
     He wasn't next to Megavolt, but still in the intersection.
He wasn't responsible for either Megavolt's outburst or the chaos
that followed, but he doubted that the police would believe him
right now. This day, Darkwing thought glumly, has gone from bad
to downright cruddy.
     He was busying trying to prevent a clear line of sight from
the police, as he wasn't about to test his dodging capabilities
against a bullet in flight. Megavolt had apparently throw up some
sort of magnetic field around him, as the bullets were straying
far from the mark on each shot. Darkwing wondered about it for a
minute, as he had never seen Megavolt pull this trick before. But
then again, whenever someone called him "Sparky", who knew how he
would react? This time, it just happened to be picking a fight
with the local police force. A fight, Darkwing noted with some
uneasiness, that Megavolt seemed to be winning.
     A movement to his right brought him out of his reverie. A
few officers had moved in around him, boxing him in and away from
his "partner", Megavolt, who was still busying himself with
increasing the amount of work for the city clean up crew
tomorrow.
     The police had a clear line of sight now, but they hadn't
fired. Darkwing hoped that it was because that they might have
sensed that his was actually a crimefighter. In truth, the
police were afraid that shouting Darkwing would only enrage
Megavolt further, but either way had the same outcome: Darkwing
was not in immediate danger.
     Noticing their willingness to let him live, Darkwing seized
upon an idea. He threw his hands up over his head in a
surrendering pose. "Wait! I can help you! I can stop him!"
     The police exchanged glances, but never let their weapons
waver from Darkwing's chest. "How?" one of them asked.
     "He'll listen to me. I'm from the same...place he is, so he
trusts me." Darkwing had been about to say the same dimension,
but thought that might be pushing his luck. Truth is stranger
than fiction, he reminded himself grimly.
     "Why should we trust you?"
     "Because you have nothing to lose. If I'm wrong, he kills
me, and you have one less wacko to worry about." That didn't come
out exactly the way he wanted, but it seemed to work.
     "You have one minute. The second after that, we open fire."
     Great, another time limit, Darkwing sighed to himself. "If
you could, use water against him. It'll short him out, but just
don't be standing within five feet of him when he does." Quickly,
he sprinted back off towards Megavolt, calling over his shoulder,
"Tell your men to hold their fire, and for goodness sakes don't
call him Sparky!"
     One of the officers hopped into a still functioning police
cruiser and told the rest of the force the deal. He then patched
through to the incoming S.W.A.T. team, updating them on what they
knew...yes, the captain was alive...no, the attackers hadn't
tried to make a break for it...well, one looks like a threefoot
tall bird and the other looks like some sort of rat/weasel/dog
type thing...no, nothing stronger than coffee...
     Megavolt was running out of police cars to blow up. He
actually had to spot and look for them now. He had tried hitting
the police officers, but they seemed reluctant to stay in one
place long enough for a clear shot. Targets that didn't move, as
opposed to those the moved quickly while shouting out rude
things, seemed to be the easier of the two to hit. He had just
spotted one, and was charging up his gloves, when a hand pulled
him back.
     "Blast it, Megavolt!" Darkwing snarled.
     "I was about to, thank you very much!" Megavolt shot back.
     "I mean why did you have to ruin everything?! Now you've
made us into wanted criminals in this world!"
     "And this situation is different from St. Canard in what
way?" Megavolt asked, regaining his feet. His glow had begun to
dim, Darkwing noted, and the police had actually stopped firing,
both bullets and names. At least _something_ was going right
today.
     "Okay," Darkwing admitted, "maybe you are used to being a
felon, but I was a respected hero!"
     "Respected!" Megavolt laughed. "Let's be honest, Darkwing.
You're one step above street sweepers in the public's eyes."
     "We are not here to discuss my popularity." Darkwing replied
testily, growing defensive. "Besides, we can always hit my
webpage when we get back. You'll see from the counter how many
people have stopped by to read all about my excellent exploits of
excitement."
     "Yeah, I've seen it. And tell me that you didn't start the
counter at one thousand."
     Darkwing was suddenly extremely interested in inspecting the
top of his hat.
     "I figured. So that means that you've actually had as many
as five people hit your page in how long? Five months?"
     "Give it time!" Darkwing snapped. "People probably just
don't know about it yet."
     "Oh please! With those huge advertisements you're put all
over the place? You go to any blue smoke dealer on the web, and
there's your ad at the top! Speaking of which, what is this
'lightbulb loony' reference in your villain's writeup about
me?"
     Darkwing blinked. "You read that?"
     "Unfortunately. Rather selfpromoting, wasn't it? All I read
about was how you risked life and limb against me time and again.
You talked about yourself at least 50% of the time."
     "Well, yeah." Darkwing kicked at the ground. "But you have
to admit, I did name you as my archenemy, not Dr. Slug."
     "Well...yes." Now it was Megavolt's turn to kick at the
ground. "And thank you for the compliment. But it still isn't
enough, Darkwing. You need to rework that whole section, if not
the whole homepage."
     "All right! All right!" Darkwing sighed. "You win, I'll at
least rework the supervillain section."
     "'Atta boy, Darkwing." Megavolt cheerfully clapped his arch
enemy on the shoulder. "I'll even help you out, if want."
     "Thanks, Megavolt. That'd be a big help. Can you give me
some info on the fearsome five, do you think?"
     "Why not?"
     Astute readers may wonder why Darkwing and Megavolt have hit
it off so well suddenly. Well, Megavolt is insane, and Darkwing
is egotistical. In a noncombat situation, these personalities
can mesh very well together.
     Even more astute readers may wonder even more what's going
on with the police, as Megavolt and Darkwing are still standing
in the middle of the intersection, surrounded by burning cars,
chunks of concrete, and other indications of a peeved Megavolt.
     Quite simply, they left. Once the captain was to driven off
to the hospital, and Darkwing had kept his promise about stopping
Megavolt's rampage, the police force used the general rule of
thumb. That is to say, look at the situation and hold up your
thumb in front of it. Then, keep backing away until you can no
longer see the situation, as your thumb completely blocks it. You
are now at the proper distance to safely stay out of whatever is
going on until those capable of dealing with it arrive.
     While the police were several blocks away, and the S.W.A.T.
team had almost arrived. Someone had the foresight to keep the
S.W.A.T. team informed of recent developments, so the troops were
taking few minutes to put protective gear into place. Their
primary orders were to subdue both of the transgressors, at which
time they would be shipped to a laboratory for proper study. They
were informed that the bird was more gullible, so could be lured
away with some reassuring words, and maybe some bird seed. The
other one would have to go by force.
     Darkwing and Megavolt, meanwhile, remained in their own
little world.
     "...but that liquid body can't be all it's cracked up to
be." Megavolt was saying. "I don't even want to _think_ about how
he goes to the bathroom."
     Darkwing nodded, writing this down in his notebook. "And
what's the deal with Negaduck? Has anyone tried talking to him
about trimming down those eyebrows? I mean, it's like he has some
sort of fungal growth up there."
     Megavolt shrugged. "Well, the rest of us think he's kind of
sensitive about that, so we try not to mention it."
     A number of squealing tires interrupted their rapport. They
turned to see several S.W.A.T. vans screeching to a halt all
around them. The back doors opened up, spilling for a mass of
wellarmored and protected men. Each one carried his rifle easy
and at the ready.
     "Well, that's rather rude of them." Megavolt commented. "Now
I have to fry them, which will probably make me lose my train of
thought." He looked at Darkwing. "You'll remind me where we left
off, right?"
     "Yeah, don't worry aboh no, wait! Not again!"
     But it was too late. Megavolt had already charged up his
plughelmet...
     But then it emitted a few feeble sparks, and the glow died.
     "Oh rats." Megavolt slapped his forehead. "Between the
electrilizer jump and my previous...uh..."
     "Rampage?" Darkwing offered, looking around again at the
ruins strewn about.
     "Oh, yeah. Thanks. Well, between that and our jump, my power
reserves are pretty much drained." He looked around. "I don't see
any power lines or anything to recharge with."
     Darkwing watched with growing fear as the S.W.A.T. team
started to pull out grenade launchers and set them up around the
area. Several rows of troops had already taken position behind
some cover, aiming their rifles at the duo in the middle. Both
Megavolt and Darkwing knew they were in serious trouble when the
last van unloaded its troops. Someone had tipped them off, as
each member was carrying a supersoaker. Darkwing kicked himself
inwardly. Megavolt did outwardly.
     "You told them, you idiot!" He snapped. "Well, this is just
skippy! You'd better figure out some way to stop them before
we're both killed!"
     Darkwing was trying to figure out just that, when one of
them motioned to him. "It's okay...uh, sir. We were told of your
assistance. Step away from the other one, and we'll keep you
safe."
     Darkwing breathed a sigh of relief at started forward, but
was yanked back by Megavolt.
     "It's a trap!" Megavolt yelled. "You'll never separate us!
We are forged from the same circuit! One for all, and all
for...everyone else. Or something."
     "Thanks, Megavolt, but I'm sure that everything will be
fine. Just let me"
     "We have to stick together to the end, Darkwing!" Megavolt
dramatically struck a pose, grasping Darkwing even tighter.
"Together, alone in a foreign world, we have to put our
differences aside and work together 'til the end!"
     "Gee, that's real sweet of you, Megs." Darkwing was trying
to squirm out of Megavolt's grip. He turned back to see the
trooper waving for him to get over there and out of the way. Why
is there a bag of bird seed in his hand? Darkwing wondered, then
dismissed it. "But this is for the best. You said you're low on
power, so let me do the talking here, and we'll be all better in
a jiffy."
     Megavolt, remembering how well things went the last time
Darkwing did all the talking, shook his head. "I'm low but not
out. Hang on. I have one more trick up my sleeve, so to speak."
     "What? What are you"
     Darkwing was cutoff as Megavolt raised his free hand
skyward, and a sudden field swept all around them. Then both
Megavolt and Darkwing shot straight up, into the night and out of
view. The S.W.A.T. team looked around uneasy. The leader shook
his head and sighed, looking at the price tag on the bird seed.
     "Buck eightyfive for nothing." He tossed the bag over his
shoulder and ordered a search to commence immediately.
     For the second time in under an halfhour, Darkwing was
treated to an aerial view of the city. This time, however, he was
not falling. Instead, he was flying slowly about 500 feet up. To
be precise, he was clinging tenaciously to Megavolt, who in turn
had his right hand magnetized to the underside of some sort of
small aerial craft.
     "What did you do _this_ time?" Darkwing quacked, waiting any
moment for them to fall again.
     "Besides saving our lives?" Megavolt responded tersely. If
having his hand firmly attached to an unknown flying object with
airborne had any effect on him, he didn't show it.
     "Oh...yeah." Darkwing took a deep breath and calmed down.
"Okay, what happened? You said you were low on power."
     "Exactly. I said I was low, not out. All I did was activate
my energyseeker, and well, here we are?"
     "Energyseeker?" Darkwing repeated.
     "Basically, my harness emits a quick surge over the area,
and detects the strongest source of power around. Then it locks
on to the target, converts a section of the object to negative
polarity, my glove to positive, and presto! My magnetic
personality brings the object to me." He looked down. "Or vise
versa. Normally, I'm drawn to a wall socket or power lines, where
the energyseeker then siphons off the power to recharge me."
     "Is that happening now?" Darkwing thought that if is was, he
should felt something by now.
     "No." Megavolt looked back at the craft he was attached to.
"This thing," he motioned with his head to the craft, "must have
a boatload of power stored up inside to beat out the power lines
we flew by. The energyseeker locked onto this as the strongest
source, but the trip up here expended too much of my power
reserves to finish the job. So, I stuck in neutral, so to speak."
     "Great." Darkwing groaned. "How long before your magnetic
glove gives out?"
     "It won't. They're permanently locked to each other until I
can power up again, canceling the magnetics in the process."
Megavolt tried to relax as much as he could, while dangling 500
feet from the Earth and having a duck clinging to him at the same
time.
     "Relax." He continued. "Enjoy the view. Enjoy the rest. As
soon as we land, I'll probably be in range of something to
recharge from, and we'll be on our way again."
     Darkwing didn't answer. He was busy studying the skyline. He
had some time on the last electrilizer trip to scope it out. At
the time he figured he might never get home, so he light as well
find the most dramatic place to pose. Now he looked with a
different intent.
     This skyline was not the same as the one on the last trip.
     True, Megavolt and he may have come through at a different
time, either many years before or after their last visit, but
there were too many differences; not enough similarities for it
to be the same city. He sighed deeply. They were lost in another
dimension. Again. With no apparent way back. Again.
     He looked below and saw the rooftops of suburbia passing
underneath. They were getting further from the city, and that
struck a chord in Darkwing. All things considered, he was a
detective, and there was one major difference between this
electrilizer jump at the last.
     The last time, the had erupted from a television in a
department store. This time, they had just appeared in midair.
He had a strong suspicion that he should try to return to the
area where they had appeared, to see what it was that made them
appear in that spot, instead of through some electronic device,
like the last time. Granted, it may have been the lightning in
the area, but it was all he had to go on.
     The problem now was getting back there. Darkwing used a free
hand to check his pockets for anything that might help. The only
thing that came close was a superstrong clothalloy (don't ask)
high tension net. Not his first choice for a substitute
parachute. Below, he could see that he was now over a wooded
area, some of the trees a respectable height. He might be able to
use the net in conjunction with a pair of elastic bands he for
repelling as a makeshift bungee cable: Dropping the net over the
top of the tree on the way down, and hope there was enough space
for the bands to slow his descent.
     Now he faced the difficult choice of separating from
Megavolt, who he would need to use the electrilizer for the trip
back, with the possibility that he may never find him again, or
of risking the fall to go back and investigate the area before
time wore the possible clues away.
     "In the meantime," Megavolt was saying, "How about a song?
Ninetynine blown fuses in the trash, ninetynine blown
fuses...You toss one out, I'll reduce you to grout, ninetyeight
blown fuses in the trash..."
     Actually, the choice wasn't nearly as difficult as Darkwing
thought.
     The explosions had died away some time ago, but the sirens
could still be heard. Most of them were fire engines, but the
rangers could still pick out the police as well. They kept their
pace up, knowing that sometimes the cleanup of any incident can
be as important as the actual happening itself.
     Keeping to their quick trot, they had soon come into the
parks surrounding the suburbia. Gadget estimated that they would
need another halfanhour to get to the area, but that could be
drastically reduced if they could snag some transportation. So
they pushed on in hopes of hopping on a emergency vehicle on it's
way there.
     They were perhaps no more than halfway through the woods,
when they all heard a sharp cracking sound for high above.
     "What's that?" Gadget asked, stopping and looking up.
     They all heard a muffled cry and saw, silhouetted against
the sky, a figure falling through the branches uncontrollably.
     "How'd a person get way up there?" Dale asked, astonished.
     "Ask him later, Dale, right now we have to save him from
falling to death!" Chip darted over to a nearby sapling, pulling
out a coil of rope he carried. "Zipper! Monty! Give me a hand!"
     They caught on to what he was doing as he lassoed the top of
the baby tree and began pulling it down. Zipper pushed the top,
while Chip and Monty pulled. It was quickly stretched out over
the area where the figure was falling.
     "Come on, Dale!" Gadget said, heading over to a rotted log.
"That sapling won't be enough."
     Dale planted himself next to Gadget, and they shoved the log
down the incline, rolling it into place under the sapling.
     "That sound help cushion the impact." Gadget looked up,
worried. "But I doubt it'll be enough." She hated the thought of
it not being enough, even though it was all they could do.
     Since they were all busy trying to prepare a safe landing
site, none of them noticed that the fall was taking longer than
it should have. Even so, the figure crashed through the remaining
branches of the trees with alarming speed. He wasn't plummeting,
but he wasn't easing in, either.
     He broke through the last leafy bough, and thudded into the
sapling, snapping Monty and Chip off their feet and into a bush
several yards away. What the sapling couldn't handle in terms of
kinetic energy, the rotted log soaked. Between the two of them,
and the elastic bands the rangers could now see, the figure
wasn't injured too badly. In fact, since it was his second fall
from a height of greater than thirty feet, he was doing dandy.
     As the dust settled, the rangers could now see that maybe he
was injured worse than they thought. He was all white, and looked
sort of feathery. He was shorter than most humans, aside from
children. They also took note of the dark clothing he wore: All
shades of purple, with some green and magenta thrown in for good
measure.
     What they couldn't understand was the webbed feet.
     They all approached cautiously, Monty and Chip absent
mindedly pulling leaves from their clothes. Zipper hovered over
the large bird, for now they could see clearly that it was indeed
a bird, but like no bird they've ever seen before.
     A groan indicated that the object of their fascination was
awakening.
     "Launchpad would have been proud of that landing." He said
groggily, shifting to sitting position. He shook his head to
clear out the cobwebs, then peered around, spotting the rangers
for the first time. He regarded them curiously, having never seen
animals in the wild who wore clothes. Not that they were shabby
dresses, mind you. Well, with the possible exception of that one
in the loud Hawaiian shirt, but it really looked like it belonged
there.
     This brought his attention to his own clothes.
     "Oh great..." he moaned, seeing the dirt and moss stains.
"Like today hasn't been going bad enough already. And who knows
how long it'll be before I can get it to a washing machine? I
doubt the Laundromats here will be welcoming to outoftowners
like me." He sighed. "Not only am I stuck here, but stuck here in
a ruined wardrobe."
     All this time, the rangers could only stand and stare.
Finally, Monterey turned to the rest. "Are the rest of you seeing
this as well?" He asked bluntly. "Or did I just hit my head too
hard upon that landing?"
     "No, Monty," Chip answered, "Or else I hit my head on the
rock you did."
     "Well I didn't hit my head on any rocks, not today anyway,
and I'm seeing it too." Dale chimed in.
     Zipper nodded to the rest, then landed lightly on Monterey's
shoulder.
     Now it was Darkwing's turn to stare. This is a new twist, he
thought.
     If they was any doubt left in his mind that he had never
been to this dimension before, this was the clincher. In all his
previous adventures, he had never run into small animals like
like this.
     True, Archie, along with Eek and Squeak could communicate
with others, but he had never seen them in any type of wardrobe.
Besides, they were the pets of Morgana, and that threw the animal
behavior guidebook out the window. Darkwing also recalled a group
of ants that were committing robberies, but that was directed by
Lilliput, and even he needed a special cap to communicate with
them.
     "Well," Gadget said decisively, "whatever he is, he's gotta
be hurt from that fall." She calmly strode up to Darkwing.
"Excuse me, Mister...uh...Mister Recently Fallen a Great
Distance, are you hurt badly?"
     Darkwing was caught offguard by the question, and had to
blink several times to bring himself back to the present.
     "Uh, no. No, not at all. I justAHHH!" He jerked in pain as
he tried to stand up. A sharp stinging was racing through his
back. It felt like he might he strained something. What is going
on? He thought with a tinge of panic. I never was this easily
hurt before, I can still feel the bruises from my first fall.
Those should have vanished by now.
     He gazed back up at the treetops, and then down along the
elastic bands connected to his waist. The bands were stretched
out, but his weight was enough to keep him down. This was another
problem. In all the past times he had tried anything like this,
the bands should have shot him back up into the air. But not this
time. Why?
     He shifted, feeling another stab of pain, and he dropped the
line thought for more immediate things.
     "Yes..." he managed in a shaky voice. "I guess I strained
something in my back."
     Gadget nodded. Her practicality had won over her fear of the
unknown. She no longer cared what he was, only that he was hurt.
"Okay, then, hold still for a minute."
She climbed up onto his back, to the bottom of his neck.
     Chip and the rest looked in amazement at Gadget as she
started a comprehensive examination of Darkwing's back, trying to
pinpoint the problem. Chip shrugged and stepped forward. Might as
well get on with it, he figured. They were already providing
medical treatment, after all.
     "Well, Mr., uh, Duck." Chip started as best could under the
circumstances. "We're the Rescue Rangers. My name's Chip, that's
Dale, Monterey Jack, Zipper, and Gadget is the one checking your
back." He indicated each ranger in turn.
     "Heya, mate. Call me Monty." Monterey greeted.
     "Pleased to meet you." Dale nodded.
     Zipper made a gesture which indicated they would have liked
it to be under better circumstances.
     "You're telling me..." Darkwing agreed. He flinched as
Gadget hit the spot.
     "Does that hurt?" She called out. She tapped the area again.
     "Yes." Darkwing's voice was very tiny. "How much medical
training have you had?"
     "I'm selftaught." She stated proudly. "No formal training."
     Darkwing nodded to himself. Figures.
     The rest of the rangers missed most of the conversation,
lost in shock. Finally Dale blurted out what they were all
thinking: "You understood what Zipper was saying?"
     Darkwing looked at them strangely. "Yeah. Is that unusual?"
     "Well, it's just that no human ever understand him." Chip
explained. "And not many animals, aside from other insects."
     "Oh, is that all?" Darkwing waved the thought aside. "Back
home, I know a few residents of the lower section of the
zoological chartno offenseand can understand them rather
well." He shrugged. Only slightly though, as Gadget was around
the strained area. "Of course, it did take me awhile to learn
what they were saying. Launchpad still has problems, but Gosalyn
caught on pretty quick..." He chuckled to himself.
     "What do you mean, 'back hom" Chip started.
     A siren broke through their individual thoughts, bring them
all to remember why they were now in the woods.
     "How bad is it, Gadget?" Chip asked. "Can he walk all
right?"
     "Yes, but he really shouldn't. He needs to rest, and I can
probably make him a compress to put on it." She dropped back to
the ground and walked back to the group.
     "Thanks, but I'll be fine." Darkwing said. I hope, he
mentally added.
     "Well, it's just that I want to find out more about what
happened to you, but we're kind of in a hurry. I thought you
might be able to tell us on the way there."
     "Where?" Darkwing said, standing up. The pain stabbed at him
again, but he fought it back.
     Chip pointed off through the woods. "Over near the city. We
heard some explosions and sirens, and wanted to go check out what
happened, and if anyone needed any help."
     "It's what we do." Dale added with a proud smile.
     Darkwing could only give a weak smile. "Oh...._that_." His
voice was attempting noninterest, but it was strained.
     Chip picked up on it in a heartbeat. "What do you mean." His
brain put two and two together, mainly two unusual incidents, and
asked, "You were involved, weren't you?" His gaze was the most
penetrating Darkwing had ever felt from a chipmunk.
     "I...uh..." His mind raced. Why was he feeling so awkward in
front of four rodents and a housefly? He set traps out for these
things at home. And what was more, he was the mighty mallard!
Darkwing Duck! Hero to the helpless, savior of the suffering, and
traffic cop to the speeders of crime! And these five...
     ...had probably saved his life. His bravado drained out of
him as he gazed back up to the trees. As likely as it was back
home that he would he survived this fall without any injuries to
speak of, he wasn't home anymore. The pain in his back was a
testament to that. And if these five...these Rescue Rangers
hadn't taken the time to intervene, without any askance, he might
not have escaped with merely a strained back.
     "All right." His voice was firm again as he put his hat back
on. His resolve in being forthcoming with the rangers lent him a
much needed strength. "You don't need to go there. Everyone who
was injured was taken away for treatment. And I'm willing to bet
the fire department has the burning cars under control. They
weren't near any buildings, so the fire is contained."
     Chip nodded. "Now, how did you come to get there? And where
is 'back home'?"
     "Well, have a seat, because it's a long story."
     "Gadget?" Chip turned to her as he nodded. "Can you get a
compress ready for him here, or do you need some other supplies?"
     She glanced about. "There should be enough here for now.
You'd be surprised at what you can do with natural ingredients."
She smiled as she went about the various trees and bushes,
selecting plants and herbs.
     "Guys, give me a hand with these leaves." Chip said, shoving
a group over towards a spot clear of rocks and roots. The others
nodded and quickly put together a small bed of leaves.
     "There you go, Mister...uh..." Dale started.
     "Darkwing." Darkwing said with a grin. He tipped his hat.
"Darkwing Duck. Crimefighter by trade."
     "Cool name." Dale said with a grin. "Well, Mr. Darkwing,
these should be more comfortable to rest on."
     "Too right." Monterey nodded.
     Zipper gave a wink. From one crimefighter to another, it
implied.
     "Thank you, and just call me Darkwing." He settled down
carefully. Again, he noted, they didn't ask if they could help;
they just did. He smiled and started to see some hope glimmering
through his storm clouds.
     Most of the damage had been neutralized, and things were
back under control now. Granted, he had a lot of repairs to do
before everything was up and running like before this minor
disaster, but at least he could get back to his original plane
now. The robots had nearly completed the first stage of the roof
entrance, and his metal dragon was returning intact.
     Nimnul wasn't completely sure how much information was
downloaded before the unit was destroyed, but he was confident
that there would be enough for his purposes. He continued work at
the computer, hoping to have it completely repaired before
morning. Losing himself into his work, he was only dimly aware of
his metal dragon returning through the roof entrance and landing,
somewhat nosily, behind him. His attention, however, was caught
by what followed next.
     "Hey, this is a pretty nice setup here, even for a weird
nosed freak."
     Nimnul spun around, but didn't see anything at first. Then
he noticed a shape underneath his metal dragon. It appeared that
someone had hitched a ride back on to his laboratory. Nimnul
wasn't as interested in how the intruder got onto the metal
dragon as much as he was intrigued by the fact that he was
apparently to stay out of sight. At least, he hadn't come out
from underneath the metal dragon, which merely glanced about,
awaiting instructions.
     Digging his remote out of his pocket, he tapped in a series
of commands to the robots not involved with the construction at
the hole/entrance. Several large, unfriendlylooking robots moved
over to encircle the intruder.
     "You might as well come on out," Nimnul stated. "I know
you're here. I'd like to destroy you with minimal damage to my
inventions. That's happened quite enough for tonight, thank you."
     "You want me to step on out?" There was a spark from the
figure. In the momentarily flash of light, Nimnul saw...well, he
wasn't sure what it was, to be frank, but he had seen some pretty
bizarre things before, most of the time as a result of one of his
experiments. So he wasn't to shaken too badly.
     He was, however, rather ticked when a surge of electricity
sprang forth for a nearby wall socket, lighting up the figure.
The metal dragon was unaffected, its interior surge suppressors
and exterior armor protection was more than adequate to keep it
from even noticing the voltage below.
     Megavolt, now able to detach himself from the underside of
the dragon, moved out from underneath it and stretched, casting a
quick glance around. He felt like teaching the human who was in
'charge', but was distracted by the dragon, actually seeing it
from the first time.
     "Whoa...so that's what my energyseeker picked out." He
nodded admirably. "Nice design. What year is it, a '97?"
     "Made this year, actually." Nimnul responded. He didn't like
the way this guy (he assumed it was male) looked, especially with
that huge battery strapped on his back. Nimnul tapped a few more
buttons on the remote, bringing the rest of his robot force down
the join the closing circle. The metal dragon turned to face
Megavolt, it's eyes glowing red with the latest instructions.
     Megavolt looked around at the approaching robots. "Oh,
you're going to show them all to me? Cool!"
     "Oh yes," Nimnul smirked. "Up close and personal."
     "Great!" Megavolt, still not quite appreciating his
situation walked up to the dragon, trying to pull its head down
for a closer look. The metal dragon made the process easier by
snapping its head won, steel jaws agape.
     "Nice teeth. IYAH!" Megavolt yelled as he jumped back, the
jaws clanging shut only inches from his head. "Well, if you
insist on this..." He lanced a bolt of electricity from his glove
to the metal, striking it squarely in the chest.
     A shower of sparks spread over the area, but the attack was
otherwise deflected. Taken aback but someone actually building a
device to last, Megavolt another approach. Another surge of
electricity hit the dragon, but this time with the intent of
draining the power from it, and transferring it to Megavolt.
     Again, the attack was repelled. Nimnul had put a lot of time
into these robots, and it showed. Maybe, given enough time to
charge himself up to full power, he might have been able to
affect the robots, but the power that was sapped from the wall
socket was rather pathetic by Megavolt's standards. He didn't
have enough to take out one of the robots, let alone a squad of
them.
     He spied Nimnul moving around them, trying to in sight of
Megavolt, but staying a safe distance away. Megavolt saw the
remote that Nimnul was holding, and decided that it might be more
effective to remove the source in this case. He arced another
shot over in that direction, but couldn't see well enough for it
to be accurate. The electricity scorched the ground near Nimnul,
but that was it.
     It was enough for Nimnul, however, as he didn't like the
idea of being reduced to cinders by someone else. Come to think
of it, he didn't like the idea of being reduced to cinders at
all. He entered the final signal for the eradication of Megavolt.
He did feel a twinge of regret, though, as he was fascinated by
the ability to control electricity like that, and would have
liked to learned more about it.
     Megavolt found the his personal space was being to be
violated rather quickly. Knowing that his normal electricity
attacks wouldn't work on this robots, he tried another tactic to
get clear of them. He quickly set himself and the nearest robots
to a positive charge, so as they lunged in at him, the
repulsion caused by to like magnets pushed him up and away from
the danger.
     Once airborne, he shot a wideangled static burst behind
him, letting the force push his momentum away from the robots. He
landed several yards away, and behind Nimnul. Spinning back
around, Megavolt absentmindedly noticed that his feet stung from
the hard landing. This was puzzling, as he had done this hundreds
of times back in St. Canard without any type of pain upon
landing.
     He put it out of his mind for the time being, which really
wasn't too hard, considering Megavolt's mind. He stepped forward
towards Nimnul, charging up his gloves.
"Why destroy the toy when you can take out the batteries?' He
said threateningly, rasing his gloves.
     "Because these 'toys' will function without them, carrying
out their last instructions." Nimnul informed him, not wavering
from his position. "Namely, your demise." The robots were lined
up behind Nimnul, but he was holding them back for the moment.
     They both knew that if Nimnul sent the robots in, Megavolt
would roast him before Megavolt was even reached. Likewise,
however, if Megavolt zapped Nimnul now, the robots would have
nothing to keep them from rendering him into hundreds of
Mircovolts. The stalemate was seen and recognized. More
importantly, however, they both had, for the first time, the
chance to meet each other's determined gaze.
     And some twisted part of them recognized the howl of madness
that echoed in the other's soul.
     Megavolt lowered his glove, dispersing the power.
     Nimnul negated the commands, sending the robots back to
their previous duties.
     And both madmen looked at each other for a long, long time.
     The storm clouds still covered the city, and lightning
occasionally played back and forth between rumbles of thunder,
but other wise the storm seemed to have settled somewhat. A few
strong winds blew out across the miles of thunderheads,
eventually coming to the area where Darkwing and Megavolt had
first appeared in this world. Directly below, over a thousand
feet to the city street, the police and fire department were
cleaning up the remains of the destroyed unit, taking statements
from witnesses, and generally trying to sort through the whole
mess.
     A pair of slanted eyes watched with interest, eyes that
glowed with a patience of someone waiting for the right moment.
Like a time bomb patiently waiting to explode.
--Chapter 4: New Allies and Old Enemies--
     Chip whistled. "That's a heck of a way to start an evening
at work." He remarked as Darkwing finished his story. Darkwing
held a small compress against his lower back, the one the Gadget
had assembled. A combination of leaves and moss, and a few other
things she told him he'd be better off not knowing about.
Whatever it was, it was working. The pain had subsided rather
quickly. Gadget, who had been monitoring the troubled area during
the story remarked on how quickly it was healing.
     "Yeah, but normally, I don't even feel it five minutes
afterwards. Like I said, it seems to be worse recently." Darkwing
shifted the compress around.
     "Could be a result of the electrilizer." Chip thought aloud.
     "Possibly." Gadget replied. "I have a theory, but we'll have
to run some tests first."
     "Tests?" Darkwing looked ill.
     "Oh, it won't take more than a few hours, really."
     "Swell." Darkwing rolled his eyes. "Well, it's not I can
think of a better idea."
     "Do we take him back to headquarters?" Dale asked. "I don't
think he'll fit."
     "But my equipment's there." Gadget looked back up to
Darkwing. "We don't need to bring him inside. He can wait
outside, and we can bring the equipment out to him, run the
tests, then go back in and process the results."
     Zipper looked at Darkwing, then to Gadget. Wait outside? His
look asked. He doesn't exactly blend in with the other park
ducks.
     "Not unless we stop by a costume shop, and outfit them in
matching suits." Monterey nodded. "Even if it's night, people are
going to be around."
     "Well, we need to get back to the headquarters anyway,
because we _still_ have to find out what Nimnul was up to." Chip
crossed his arms and looked around, thinking. "Go back, gather
information and supplies, and get the Ranger Wing."
     "But Chipper, how are we supposed keep Darkwing  
inconsequential?" Dale asked.
     "What?" Darkwing quacked.
     "The word is 'inconspicuous', Dale, and we'll do what Monty
said: Stop by a costume shop." Chip grinned, and idea growing.
     "Uh, Chip m'lad, I was kidding about outfitting the ducks."
Monterey said slowly.
     "We're not outfitting 'the ducks', Monty." Chip reassured
him. "Just 'a duck'."
     The others slowly caught and nodded, smiling.
     Except for one.
     "I've got that bad feeling in the pit of my stomach again."
Darkwing moaned.
     Gadget, checking the small of the back once more, confirmed
that it was almost healed, so the rangers climbed onto Darkwing,
who began a steady trot back towards the city.
     "What's the game plan, then?" Dale asked Chip.
     "First, we get Darkwing disguised. Then we stop back by the
headquarters and let Gadget run those tests of hers." Chip and
Dale were tucked safely in the collar of Darkwing, while Gadget
and Monty were snugly in between the jacket and inner shirt of
Darkwing. Zipper went from the tip of Darkwing's hat, to the
shoulder, next the Dale, and then to whenever it best suited him.
They all had a clear view of the approaching city.
     "Actually," Darkwing said to Chip, keeping in the shadows of
the suburbs, "After the disguise, I would like to stop by and
check out that area where Megavolt and I first came through. I
think that might shed some light on what happened."
     "Well, at least make a quick detour to our HQ." Gadget said,
then as he started to object, "Just long enough for us to get the
Ranger Wing. It we enable us to help you out better."
     Chip nodded. "We can cover more ground that way."
     Darkwing agreed, coming up to the city itself. They saw the
first of many buildings taller than two stories. Darkwing pulled
out his Gasgun and fired the grappling hook up to the roof.
Tugging to make sure it held, he released to coiling button,
pulling him and the rangers up to the roof.
     They stuck to the rooftops as much as possible, avoiding
anyone on the street and any windows nearby that had a light on
inside. After several minutes, Darkwing landed deftly behind the
costume shop. The rangers quickly disembarked and moved over to
the door. Darkwing walked up the steps and tried the doorknob.
     "Locked." He took a step back. "Okay, no problem, I'll just
use my patented webfoot kick, and we'll be on our wa"
     "Wait!" Chip called out. "Let us open it from the inside.
There might be a burglar alarm that would be triggered by forced
entry.
     It took Darkwing a moment to process the information. "Oh.
Yeah." He resumed his normal stance as the rangers entered
through a small crack by the stairs. A scant few minutes later,
and Darkwing heard a soft click from the inside. The door swung
upon, the rangers waiting down by the door frame.
     "Okay mate, all set." Monterey nodded as he went back into
the shop.
     "Thanks," Darkwing said as he stepped in and shut the door
behind him. "I'll get the next one. You've got to see my
entrance..."
     They took about ten minutes in the shop, finally finding
what they were looking for: A number of fake zippers, fake
buttons, a pair of widelegged pants, and a couple of good sized
shoes. Darkwing quickly slipped into the pants and shoes (which
were purple and black respectively, so they matched his outfit),
and the rangers attached the zippers and buttons around his neck,
head, and hands.
     When they had finished, they took a moment to appreciate
their work. Now if anyone saw Darkwing, they'd think that he was
a midget or a child on his to a costume party. The fake zippers
and buttons gave the impression that he was only wearing a very
realistic duck costume.
     "There!" Dale nodded proudly. He had done most of the
direction for this disguise. "Now Darkwing, people will think
that you're really a human."
     "Sort of..." Darkwing mumbled.
     "As long as they don't look too long." Gadget noted.
     "And there's bad lighting." Monterey observed.
     "And they have bad vision." Chip remarked.
     Zipper merely sighed and rolled his eyes.
     Dale shrugged. "Well, we work with what we have. Anyway,
it's the best we're going to be able to do."
     "It'll do." Darkwing said. "I don't intend to go parading
around town. Not yet, anyway."
     "Yeah..." Chip said speculatively.
     "Anyway," Darkwing continued, "Let's get this over with. I
think I'd rather be shot than have to spend too long looking like
this."
     "With the way your dressed, you might get shot anyway."
Monterey remarked dryly.
     Darkwing just looked at his disguise and groaned again.
"Come on."
     The rangers resumed their places and Darkwing left through
the back again, shutting the door and hoping that there were no
video cameras recording. He could handle the idea of being hunted
again, but not if they spread what his current image was around
the force.
     Another series of roof hops and wall scaling brought
Darkwing to the rangers home base in the park. Darkwing was
feeling more nervous than ever. They neglected to mention the
fact that the park was directly across the street from the police
station.
     "Did I mention that I'm a wanted fugitive?" He mentioned
hurried, glancing over his shoulder, just waiting for a wave of
cops to wash over him.
     "That's a good pickup line." Gadget grinned. "Seriously,
Darkwing, you'll be fine. Just stay in the bushes, and there'll
be no problems. We'll be right back with the Ranger Wing." She
climbed down from his collar and hastened up the tree, Chip and
Dale right behind. Monterey lagged behind a bit to mention
something.
     "Just for your own knowledge," He said quietly, "Whenever
Gadget says, 'no problems' it's like she thumbs her nose at the
spirits of bad luck. They don't like that."
     "Great..." Darkwing was now on the brink of paranoia.
     "I'm not saying it will happen," Monterey quickly explained,
"Just that you should keep your peepers peeled." With that, he
went off to join the others. Zipper was the only ranger left.
     "You sticking around, Zipper?" Darkwing asked as he crouched
into a cluster of shrubs to wait for the rest of the rangers.
     Zipper nodded. There are perks to having your own set of
wings, he grinned.
     Darkwing smiled and nodded. Zipper's presence helped to calm
him down, so he stopped worrying about the police, and stared
worrying about Megavolt.
     I've got to find him, too, he thought grimly. Dollars to
doughnuts we'll need that electrilizer to get home. Not too
mention that as much as I'd like to, I can't leave him here.
After all, it's his fault I'm down twenty dollars, so _he's_ the
one who's going to fork it over!
     As always, Darkwing had managed to overcome his fear and
settle on what was important in his life: Him.
     "Okay then, try this one:
          I am the beginning of it all
          Although in my old age I may fall
          If my inventory you wish to be scrollin'
          Best for you to use my colon
          Or you're going to run into a wall."
     Megavolt nodded, pleased, at sat back. Nimnul chewed over
this latest one, for a moment. However, he had been working with
computers, so it was at the top of his mind.
     "DOS." He announced triumphantly.
     Megavolt frowned. Nimnul was no creampuff in the technical
field. He didn't know the short, squat man that well, but already
was growing a strong respect for the Professor's knowledge.
     "Okay, I have one:
          Wherever you go, I am there
          I am what all systems share
          No matter if you're IBM or a Mac
          I am the basis for all of that."
     Not difficult for Megavolt, mainly because he had already
been thinking about computers. "ASCii."
     Now Nimnul sat back with a frown. He, too, was becoming very
aware of Megavolt's considerable knowledge of electronics and
mechanics.
     Megavolt sat forward, thinking. He decided to divert the
track from electronics a bit.
          "A quarter to the right
           The twist around a thread
           Can make me too tight
           Which all machines dread"
     It was definitely a strand away from the computer riddles,
Nimnul thought. But he had been building things for quite a while
now. He remembered the simple set of operations he went through.
Testing the power levels, tightening the bolts, and checking
the...
     "Torque!" Nimnul laughed. He regarded the...well, whatever
it was, across from him. To be honest, it looked like some
dog/rat/weasel type thing, but Nimnul didn't think that was the
technical term for it. He had introduced himself as Megavolt, and
related the events that brought him here, and it had started
Nimnul's mind working.
     He had a suspicion that somehow, the events he had gone
through, with the malfunctioning computer and exploded unit, and
the events Megavolt had gone through were linked. Not by much,
maybe, but it was there. Still, he decided to wait until he knew
more before saying anything. He was about to ask another riddle,
when Megavolt spoke again.
     "Pardon my asking," He said conversationally. "But what are
you up to?" He nodded at the robots around them.
     "Oh, them." Nimnul nodded, glad to have a chance to talk
about diabolical plans with someone equally twisted. "Those are
my latest inventions. I'll be using them to start gathering
materials and information for my next plan. I started tonight,
but ran into unexpected difficulties."
     Megavolt nodded. Nimnul had told him about what had happened
to him earlier this evening. He, too, had his theories, but like
Nimnul, decided to wait until confirmation before saying
anything.
     "You see," Nimnul continued, propping one foot on a knee,
"I've worked with robots in past, to some degree of success. The
main problems I found was that some vermin could sometimes infest
them, sabotaging them, and generally make my life unhappy.
     "But not these." He smiled as he nodded towards the gleaming
metal robots. The roof entrance was nearly complete by now. The
robots had worked efficiently and effectively. "They're completed
sealed off from that." He paused. "Not completely. I do have an
emergency access panel on each if I need it, but it's coded, so
it'll be same enough."
     "But why monsters?" Megavolt asked. He reached over to the
counter behind them, grabbing a cup of coffee for each of them.
He gave them a quick charge to warm them up, then handed one to
Nimnul.
     "Well, I figure if you're going to terrorize the city, you
might as well do it with style, you know?" He sipped his coffee
before continuing. "My only complaint is that they aren't
advanced enough for artificial intelligence."
     "Why not?" Megavolt figured that Nimnul could have done so,
if he really wanted.
     "My problem with A.I. is that it takes up so much space in
memory, and things are pretty crammed in there as it is." He
pointed to the dragon, who was getting a new tail attached by
what appeared to be an Orc and an Ogre. "Do you know how much
space fire breath takes up?" He rolled his eyes. "I'm lucky I
don't need to strap a zip drive on its back."
     Megavolt nodded glumly. "What are they up to, then?
Something that requires complex actions?"
     "In a way. I still do the majority of work here, but they
all still need to be completely computer compatible. Right now
I'm working on a theory that I can steal the entire worlds
databases, and put it one sole system. Then, with the ability to
control the entire world through the computer, like power plants,
city records, police computers, water and sewer, and so on, I can
pretty conquer the world at my leisure."
     Megavolt nodded. "An admirable plan." He thought about
trying it himself, but that kind of thing never really interested
him. He always figured the ruling the world would be a lot of
work, and be to similar to some sort of legal job. So, he was
more than happy continuing the fine tradition of robbing and
terrorizing the populace for kicks. Too bad the populace didn't
seem to think it was as much fun.
     He thought for a moment. Something was odd about Nimnul's
plan. Of course, Nimnul himself was odd, but this was more of an
oversight. "Where could you store that much information, though?"
Megavolt turned to the Professor.
     "Well, you've heard of Virtual Memory? I'd be using
something like that. Call it, Extradimensional Memory."
     "Really? You mean storing the whole database in another
dimension?" Megavolt grinned. "That would work. You'd need to
find a proper dimension to store it in, though."
     "Oh, I know where. I found out about a few month's ago. On
the Internet, no less. Really. I typed in the words
'Extradimensional memory storage' and there I was."
     "I'd like to get my hands on that search engine...finding
that toasteroven homepage should be a breeze." He turned back to
the robots. "So how do they fit in? Wait...don't tell me." He
quickly said as he started to see Nimnul's plan.
     "They go out, and gather up the necessary equipment and
information, then bring it back to you, where you can put it all
together." Megavolt began to grin, seeing the plan crystalize to
simplicity. "Then, they go and start the ultradownload. Because
there are so many, so can have them in all parts of the world at
once. You monitor them from here, and transmit all the data to
this Extradimensional storage, where only you can access it."
     Nimnul's grin was a wide as Megavolt's. "Great minds think
alike."
     "Twisted minds think." Megavolt thought for a moment.
"Sometimes."
     Nimnul nodded readily to this.
     "So how's it coming, then?" Megavolt asked, downing the rest
of his coffee.
     "Slow." Nimnul sighed. "Like tonight, for instance. If they
only had their own intelligence, things would go so much faster.
I wouldn't have to be directing them all the time."
     "I think I can help you with that."
     Nimnul sputtered his drink. "Seriously? How?"
     "Well, I've done it before. Any appliance I touched came to
a life of it's own. Of course, they revolted and turned to turn
me into a power generator for the rest of my life, but hey, we
all make mistakes."
     "Of course." Nimnul understood perfectly.
     "But I think I know how to subvert it, all we have to do is
put in a few simple commands into their programming beforehand,
and we'll be all set."
     "Wow..." Nimnul had a dreamy look on his face. "You'd really
do that for me?"
     "Sure. I'm going to be in town for a while, so why not?
Besides, you can probably help me out when you gather more
information on other dimensions. It'll help me to get home
quicker." Megavolt extended his hand.
     "Of course I will." Professor Nimnul clasped Megavolt's hand
and shook it. "We inventor's have an unspoken oath, after all."
     "We do?"
     "Well, I've never heard it, but I would guess we do. Shall
we begin?" He stood up and headed over to the mechanical bay of
his laboratory.
     "Well, there is one more thing that we need to check on
first." Megavolt said after he stood. He realized, he actually
felt a little tired. The events of the evening weren't anything
that should have put him out like this. But it did. "I think that
there's something else going on here. With me."
     "What do you mean?" Nimnul asked, turning back to him.
     "Well, let me explain something about my world..."
     "The determined Darkwing Duck doggedly digs for details of a
dimensional door." Darkwing dramatically stated as he inspected
the ledge of the building his was walking on. The city street was
several hundred feet below, and directly above him was the spot
where he and Megavolt had popped through. This was about as close
as Darkwing could get to it, and he hoped it was close enough.
     "You know, you're pretty good at that word stuff." Dale said
as he moved on down the ledge, also looking for clues.
     "Thank you Dale." Darkwing's ego inflated promptly. "All
part of being a superhero. You see, when you're a superhero, you
have to take the dramatic approach, for your fans. It's re"
     "Oh, I know about the superhero stuff. I was one, you know."
He mentioned as he checked around the lip of the ledge.
     "You were?" This caught Darkwing offguard. He took a moment
to stand up, tucking his magnifying glass away with his disguise.
Up here, he figured he didn't need to worry about it. More over,
those shoes were making his feet hurt.
     "Sure." Dale continued. He turned around and looked up at
Darkwing. "Back when I was Rubber Bando, I was the city's biggest
hero, biggest hope, biggest"
     "Pain in the outback." Monterey Jack finished, coming around
the corner. "I can't recall the last time I saw somebody with
such an ego problem."
     "It wasn't that bad....was it?" Dale looked sheepishly at
Monterey.
     "Yes Dale, it was. You were so full of yourself we had bets
running to see when you finally would burst. At the climax of it,
you were more concerned with parades than crimefighting. What
kind of hero is that, right Darkwing?"
     Darkwing he a impulsive urge to be elsewhere. Unfortunately,
a ledge over three hundred feet in the air didn't often many
opportunities. "Well...ego is that bad...not really. I mean, you
have to keep your selfconfidence up and all..." He stammered.
"Right?" He added in a tiny voice.
     "See?" Dale said, coming to Darkwing's rescue. "He
understands what I mean."
     "Dale, I'm not saying that you were a bad crimefighter,"
Monterey stated. "Merely that you started to let that fame go to
your head."
     Dale shrugged. "Well, yeah, but it _was_ fun while it
lasted."
     "Find anything, guys?" Gadget called out. She pulled the
Ranger Wing up from the street below and leveled it off, even
with the ledge.
     "Not yet, Gadget." Dale answered. "But we just started on
this side. How about you?" Gadget had gone down to check out the
wreckage below. It appears that the unit that had crashed was
directly below the entrance point for Darkwing and Megavolt.
Guessing that it probably wasn't a random chance, Gadget headed
down to see if she could find out what the machine was, and why
Nimnul might have wanted it.
     "Did I ever!" She said with a grin, landing the plane. She
hopped out, beaming with happiness. "I think we may have just
made some huge strides here tonight!"
     "Gadget, do you think I was egotistical when I was Rubber
Bando?" Dale put on his most disarming smile.
     "Uh..." Gadget had let herself get caught unawares by the
question, and didn't really want to tell Dale what she thought of
him at one point during his career as Rubber Bando. "What brought
this on?" She stalled for time.
     "Aw, Dale was just giving his resume to Darkwing, claiming
his time as Rubber Bando at the top of the list. I told him that
it was ego that was at the top, but he doesn't seem to want to
accept that."
     "Well, I can't believe that I was that bad."
     "Believe it, Dale." Gadget said honestly. "No one should
ever be burdened with the ego you had at one time. How can anyone
be a hero with the selfinflated image blinding them? Right
Darkwing?"
     "I think I'll go get Chip." He quickly scaled the sides of
the wall up to the top, where Chip went off to. "And there's
nothing wrong with a big ego," he muttered. "Really."
     The top of the building was a four sided pyramid, with a
slow, pulsing, red light on the top of a rod in the center of the
pyramid. This is were Chip had come, not looking around for any
signs of clues on the building, but instead so he could get a
clear view of the spot Darkwing said the crossing had takenplace.
     He was staring up at it when Darkwing reached him. Darkwing
noticed that Chip was merely sitting there, gazing up with a
frown, looking...scared?
     "Hey," he carefully said, "Chip. You done up here?"
     Chip turned, then glanced back up. "Come here, Darkwing, I
want to see if you see this, too."
     Darkwing stepped, being careful with his balance. "What is
it? You see something?"
     "Yes, look up there. No, more to the left...stop. Right
there. Do you see a...a shimmering?" Chip looked back to the
Masked Mallard, looking for confirmation.
     Darkwing squinted, and for a moment, he thought he saw a
quick ripple of light, like a ripple across water, but then it
was gone. "I...think so. It might be lightning."
     Chip shook has head. "No lightning acts like that. I've been
sitting here watching it for over ten minutes, and it 'ripples'
like that every so often, right at the same spot."
     "Okay then," Darkwing said, "Can you guys take the Wing up
there? Get a closer look?"
     Chip was silent for a moment. "I thought about it, but to be
brutally honest, I...I don't the feeling I'm getting from it." He
looked down. "I'm afraid you might say."
     Darkwing regarded Chip with a raised eyebrow. Even thought
they had only know each other for a half a night, Darkwing got
the strong impression the Chip was perhaps the bravest one in the
group. He certainly had the strongest sense of responsibility, so
to hear him say this was an unexpected development.
     Darkwing looked back up. The storm clouds slowly rolled over
them, but the ripple occurred again, in the same spot. Like Chip
had said. Darkwing looked at it for a short while longer,
thinking about it. The night breeze blew over the brims of their
hats, causing the only noise in the silence. For brief period of
time, Darkwing could feel what Chip was fearing. Not fear as Chip
thought it was, but more so for the safety of his friends. Chip
was probably willing to risk it by himself, but not with others
along.
     How many times have I told Gosalyn to wait at home? Darkwing
thought to himself. Told her it was too dangerous? He saw the
same concern in Chip, and decided to leave it be. It was up to
Chip if they would investigate it or not.
     "Gadget's returned." Darkwing informed Chip. "She says that
she's learned a lot about what's been going on, so I thought I'd
come get you before she started the full explanation."
     Chip nodded and turned away from the sky. "Thanks Darkwing."
He smiled, showing that meant thanks for the excuse to leave.
     They soon were back on the ledge, giving Gadget plenty of
room to pace back and forth as she excitedly explained.
     "I landed in the alley, then headed over to the clean up
process first, before the cleared away the unit entirely. What a
mess! Parts and pieces were all over the street, and it had
covered all sorts of cars and the like. There was a lot of people
heading all over the place, so no one paid any attention to me as
I moved around, looking at the remains."
     She paused for a breath. "It was advanced, that was easy to
tell, even from the worst parts. Anyway, I figured that we could
learn more about it at our leisure, so I loaded up the back of
the Wing with microchips and other things that were actually
still intact. Of course, that wasn't really a whole lot, so I
grabbed lots of scrap metal and other things I could use."
     She turned to the rest of the group. "Umm, some of you will
have to ride back with Darkwing." She blushed. "The back seat is
sorta full."
     If Chip and Dale were upset at the back seat, her blush
completely erased it. They merely smiled and nodded. Monterey
rolled his eyes. Who says Gadget doesn't know how to use her
looks? He thought with an inward chuckle.
     "Anyway," she continued, "I then went to check out the
actual building itself. It was the headquarters for a world
renown company, the MacFarland Research Group. This was
intriguing, but not nearly as intriguing as what they were up to.
Remember where Nimnul broke into? Well, I found the place easily,
considering the mess the Nimnul's robot left, and while everyone
was talking with the police and phoning callin shows I took the
time to nose around their records. Some of it was out already for
the police investigation, making my job that much easier. It
wasn't long before I came across a really interesting discovery."
     Another deep breath. "They were actually researching other
dimensions!" She turned to face them all. "I mean, they had
already found out some interesting information about some and
even on how to get there! Science has brought as so far..." She
was grinning widely, her eyes shining. None of the rangers could
remember the last time they saw her this excited. She was so
excited about this that she actually stopping talking, basking in
the knowledge she had just gained.
     It was quiet for a moment. Zipper looked around at the rest
of them. Monterey was scratching his head. He never really got
into the scientific jargon that Gadget threw around. Darkwing was
already thinking to himself, looking back up into the sky. As for
Chip and Dale...
     While Gadget was momentarily silent, staring straight ahead
at nothing, it was quite obvious what Chip and Dale were staring
at. Zipper had to admit, Gadget hadn't been this radiant a quite
a while. He doubted that either of them had even noticed she had
stopped talking. They both were gazing at her as if children
staring in awe at seeing the sun rise for the first time.
     Flying over behind them, Zipper used his patented chipmunk
awakening procedurepulling the tails out 'til they snap back.
     "Argh!" The two chipmunks called as they snapped back to the
present, literally.
     "Hmm?" Gadget asked, broken from her reverie, but still
grinning.
     "Uh, just wondering why Nimnul sent that robot there, then."
Chip recovered first, trying not to let his stinging end bother
him. Zipper's muffled laugh behind him didn't help.
     "Well, the unit that was destroyed was were they held all
off their records. They figured that by putting the only terminal
in the vault, then only powering it when they needed it, they
records would be safe." She shrug