Duck Knight rises

Chapter 3

Launchpad tied several props around his car then drove on, disguising it as a bush, a little too thoroughly. He sneaked into the lot, posed, the security officers passed by him. He jogged on until he found the trailer in question then set his back against it, and halted, recognizing the voice of Launcher. He grimaced then tip toed closer.

"Oh, you terrorized your Darkwing Duck action figure, too!"

Launchpad halted in his tracks.

"Whenever I felt down and needed a good laugh," the actor was quiet for a solid moment looking toward the Darkwing Duck toy with fondness. "I would get this sucker out, and put him into mortal danger, and like clockwork, he would get himself out of it."

"It's so pathetic how he continued to work alone despite how dangerous it is." Launcher replied. "I don't think he woulda survived his evil counterpart."

"For all we know, he probably did die off screen because the evil Darkwing Duck got out of his binds and stabbed him in the back."

Launcher nodded in agreement.

"Probably, and probably not." Launcher said, chuckling, shrugging. "He would escape the sewers then show up the night after his evil counterpart is gloating, surprising him, all bandaged up."

"That is so annoying when that happens."

"I wholeheartedly agree." Launcher patted on the actor's shoulder.

"And so funny at the same time."

"Can't help but love all those villains, trying to make him fall, and he just, doesn't stay down for long, it's admirable."

"Almost." Drake looked sly.

"Yeah, almost." Launcher looked toward the action figure. "Which makes it so fun to try killing him." He looked toward him. "What's your name?"

"I got a lunchbox of him, and got my face planted in it," the actor instead changed the subject.

"What did you do?" Launcher was curious.

"I thought what would Darkwing Duck do but couldn't?"

"He would get back up and give the bully a black eye." Was the reply.

"I got back up and whooped his ass, became a bigger bully than him," he puffed his chest out, proudly. "the finest bully, the most revered bully up into college."

"When I get low. . ." Launcher was voiceless for a long moment gazing upon the action figure. "I imagine myself aiming my favorite rocket launcher and trying to shoot down the thunderquack, or his ratcatcher."

"Does it work?"

"Every time like a charm!" Launcher nodded, persistent, proudly. "Darkwing Duck came to my rescue like he did with the villains, everytime." he sounded quite fond of the distant past. "He's so reliable, showing up, when sadness least expects him."

"He's the inspiration why I sought out villain roles."

"Oh, he did?" Launcher's brows hunched together. "How?"

"Every good hero needs its villain, a villain who always gets back up, never gives up, shakes it off, and tries again!"

"Like Darkwing Duck." Launcher said.

The actor looked up toward him with a smile then nodded.

"Personally, I feel like he is repressing his inner dark desires and that he needs to lash it out, to get dirty, nice and evil, covering off that shiny mushy thing making it all rotten." then the young duck continued. "So what, he's becoming a villain, the police will get involved and he'll try again."

Launcher looked up from the toy then toward the young duck.

"Gee, sounds like a negative version of Darkwing Duck." Launcher looked aside. "Do kind of wish it were actually real," he looked upon the well preserved toy then smiled. "would serve as sharpening my skills from time to time outside of taking the McDuck's out for adventure."

The flickering light bulb above the young actor's head finally became consistent.

"How would you feel about being in the picture?" Launcher turned his attention toward the shorter duck as his eyes became big. "It'll be fun! I can sweet talk Jim in as a random civilian, and then, like on cue, he'll have to show up as Darkwing Duck because his character is being brutally attacked."

"That. is. WICKED!" Launcher exclaimed, stretching his arms. "That's a good Darkwing Duck movie. A light being sparked in darkness, the end of the darkness beginning, the start of entertainment, oh, this is going somewhere really good pretty quickly!"

"And the props are gonna be armed. He's resilient, remember, able to bounce back. It is definitely going to be fun."

Launchpad stepped back, his skin paling, loudly gasping, then turned around and ran. Tripping over a collection of trash cans running, like his life depended on it, making noise behind him. He made it outside of McDuck Studio then gazed around searching for the actor's figure but he couldn't see his distinctive purple and blue palette from a distance. Panic grasped Launchpad's heart then gave it a squeeze. The tall duck ran toward the guard then set his hands on the edge of the ledge.

"Did you see short old duck with a fedora?" Launchpad asked.

"He went in there after having some epiphany." was the guard's reply.

The guard pointed toward the entrance as the blood in Launchpad's face drained, terrified.