Nightfall had long descended on DuCaine Metropolis by the time the collective group had made their way to Canard's hideout. Nestled slightly southeast of downtown, under the road and in the old sewer system, Canard came up to a rather large steel door that slid open effortlessly with the input of the correct password.

Beyond the steel doors the sewer floors had been covered with another alloy, making them smooth and clean. The smell that lingered in the sewer did not seem to drift into the hideout. Looking around, an array of crates and supplies could be seen strewn about, along with a couple of computers, a makeshift bed made out of a hammock, and to Wildwing's delight a walled-off area that appeared to be built-in lockers and showers.

"What is this place?" Nosedive finally asked, glancing around at the oddly constructed refuge.

"The Resistance used to use this as their main headquarters," Mallory answered when Canard did not. The tan mallard had immediately walked over to the computers and began connecting his portable equipment to it.

"They were pretty small in the beginning, so they constructed what they needed and used what was already available," Mallory continued. "I thought they took most of it when they moved, but I guess not everything is transportable."

"I brought a lot back, actually," Canard clarified. "Most everything was gone except the showers, which are connected to the city's old reservoir."

"Nothing like a, uh, ice water shower to wake you up, huh?" Tanya joked, walking around to view the area. She stopped abruptly just past Canard's computers and pointed at something around the corner. "Is that what I think it is?" she asked excitedly.

Wildwing and the others curiously walked over to see what she was referring to. On the other side of the hideout—just beyond the showers—was a massive jet, glistening brand new even in the dim light of the hideout.

Canard smiled at the airship. "One of the last of the Aerowings, built right here in fact."

"I know—I, uh, designed it!" Tanya exclaimed, walking up to the airship and rubbing her hand along its side. "The Resistance uses the larger models now, but uh—this one really is my best design yet."

"Why was it left 'ere?" Duke asked, walking up next to the blonde duck to admire the jet's aerodynamic shape.

"Because it was built in here and there's only one way to get it out," Canard explained, looking up. Following his gaze, Wildwing could see two rather large steel doors above the airship, their hinges indicating that the doors opened up and out.

"They outgrew this place before they were in need of the ship. It wasn't worth alerting half the Monitor Towers in the city to save one aircraft, so they just left it."

"Is that what we'll be usin', then?" Duke asked, having walked the length of the ship and returning to the group.

Canard nodded to him. "Once we fly out of here we'll be on everyone's radar—there won't be any turning back then."

"Well, uh, before we go off and do a silly thing like that, I think I'm gonna take my chances with that ice water shower," Nosedive grinned.

Despite how ridiculously cold it was, it was probably the longest and greatest shower Wildwing had ever taken. It took three solid washes to remove the buildup of dirt and grime in his feathers, along with an entire bar of soap. Freshly clean and given a basic uniform of green pants, a long-sleeved green shirt, military-grade boots, and a belt, Wildwing had no qualms trashing his old outfit once and for all.

In the main area Wildwing smelled hot food coming from what looked like a portable stove. Walking over to the aroma, he was greeted with a large bowl of stew from Grin.

"You cook?" Wildwing asked curiously.

"Energy is the key to life," the large mallard simply stated, returning to the large pot simmering on the burner.

"Well, uh, thanks," Wildwing replied, still slightly shocked at seeing hot food in a place like this. He looked to his right to see on the table a few loaves of bread, some spread, and a bunch of wide-brimmed spoons. He dressed a slice of bread and grabbed a spoon before walking over to the group, who appeared to be using the supply crates as makeshift chairs.

Finding an empty seat next to his brother, Wildwing sat down amongst the conversation. It appeared Nosedive was given similar threads after his shower: a short-sleeved green shirt, pants, belt, and military-grade boots.

"Wow, and I thought Dive havin' blonde hair was a su'prise!" Duke commented at him.

"You clean up nicely," Tanya added, smiling at him. "Had no idea you had, you know—white feathers."

Wildwing blushed slightly but shrugged it off. "Yeah, well, a year in the caves will do that I guess."

"You guys were mining beryllium?" Mallory asked, sounding surprised.

Wildwing nodded. "Wasn't everyone that wasn't free?"

"Most priso'ers are in d'eir factories now, making drones and Drake knows what else," Duke responded as he took a bite of his bread. "And d'ose unlucky enough in the mines don't usually last long, from what I 'eard."

"I don't know if that makes us lucky or unlucky then," Wildwing reflected, taking a sip of the stew. It was hot, savory, and seasoned with spices and herbs to give it a slight kick as he swallowed. The warm feeling it left was something he had not experienced in such a long time…

In simpler words, it was delicious.

"It makes you stronger or it kills you," Canard interjected, taking a sip of his own bowl of brew. "Those I've seen come out of the mines are weakened and permanently changed. Many have lost the will to live."

Wildwing and Nosedive glanced at one another, unsure of how to respond. Finally Wildwing said, "I wouldn't say we aren't changed from it."

"Or weakened by it," Nosedive added. "It wasn't a walk in the park, but we managed." Feeling a bit under the microscope, Nosedive looked around at the group. "Were none of you captured?"

The rest of the group looked at each other and back to Nosedive, collectively shaking their heads. Grin came up with his own bowl of stew and bread then, opting to sit cross-legged on the floor to enjoy his cooked meal.

"What about you Grinster? Never was captured?" Nosedive asked.

"One cannot help others when one is in need of help themselves," Grin responded.

"I'll … take that as a no?"

Grin bobbed his head in agreement, choosing to sip his stew straight from the bowl rather than use a spoon.

"I guess we were the only suckers then, eh Wing?"

"You aren't suckers," Mallory retorted, dipping some of her bread into the broth. "We were lucky in our positions when the war started."

"She's right. Da Brot'erhood lived underg'ound to begin wit', so we had a jump start on ever'one."

"And the government had, uh, good evacuation routes," Tanya added.

"Perhaps," Wildwing said quietly. "But right now I'd have to say we're all pretty lucky right now."

"'ere 'ere to that," Duke said, raising his stew bowl as a toast.

The group raised their bowls in response and drank from them, a chorus of smiles and, "Here here!"s preceding it.

The rest of the dinner went by smoothly with light conversation, stories of their time before the war, and Nosedive's ridiculous jokes that he insisted were hilarious. Wildwing knew very little about all these strangers, but oddly felt at ease with them. He imagined it was probably because he'd been starved for friendship in the mines for so long, but the more he conversed with them, the more he felt like it was something more meaningful than that.

As dinner finished and the group slowly scattered, either taking some time to reflect or simply to rest, Canard pulled Wildwing aside to speak to privately.

"Looks like the military clothes fit nicely," he commented.

Wildwing looked down at them, laughing lightly. "A little tight for my taste, but I suppose that serves a purpose."

"The material is meant to withstand a lot of brunt force—great when fighting machines that like to blow up and shoot shrapnel at you."

"Ha, I imagine."

Canard leaned up against his computer desk and crossed his arms. "So, are you ready for tomorrow?"

Wildwing sighed. "Can I be? I still don't know why I'm here, Canard. These ducks—" he looked around to the others in the midst of their own conversations "—are all great at what they do. But what the hell am I going to do to help take down Dragaunus?"

Canard smiled at Wildwing, shaking his head. "Believe it or not, Wing, you have a lot of potential. It's why I always tried to get you to join the Special Forces with me."

Wildwing outright laughed at that. "Canard, buddy—come on. Aside from maybe Grin over there I'm probably the biggest pacifist you'll find in DuCaine Metropolis."

"You don't have to be trigger-happy to be in the military, Wing, trust me," Canard replied. "Believe it or not, the Special Forces are all about keeping the peace."

Wildwing cocked an eyebrow at him incredulously.

"Every mission we go on is to protect our home or save those that have been captured. You're one of the biggest protectors there is—you've always been that way with your brother, your parents, your friends—you already have ingrained in you what the Academy spends years trying to teach its cadets."

Wildwing sighed, shaking his head. "Yeah, well, maybe in another life, huh?"

Canard shook his head back at him. "Nope, this life. Tomorrow. With the right armor, of course," he grinned and beckoned Wildwing over to a crate not far from them.

"Canard—"

Canard ignored him, instead picking up the heavy alloy lid of the box and tossing it to the side. "The Special Forces had this prototype that we'd tried on a few missions. It worked flawlessly but never had the chance to make it to full production." The tan mallard brushed some straw out of the top of the crate and pulled a rather large, white chest plate out of the box. "It's really meant for defense, which has never been my strong suit." He turned and handed Wildwing the large piece of armor.

Wildwing slowly took it from him as he surveyed the equipment. "This is huge."

Canard laughed. "It looks ridiculous, but trust me—it's made from a special metal that's light but strong, and the arms have a dozen contraptions within that allows for offensive maneuvers as well."

"The arms?" Wildwing asked as he looked at the chest plate.

Canard nodded and turned back to the box, fishing out the remaining two pieces of equipment. "Here, try it on."

Wildwing hesitated briefly before slipping the chest armor over his head and snapping it in place. The arm pieces consisted of heavy alloy forearms and thick, goalie-like black gloves that he slipped on without any problems.

"I feel like a fool."

Canard grinned and shook his head. "You look like you were meant for that gear, Wing."

"Whoa!"

Wildwing heard his brother call out and barely had time to register the sound before another one followed:

"WATCH OUT!"

Wildwing's instincts kicked in. His heavy forearm armor came up to protect his face and instantly came in contact with a heated puck.

The flaming hot puck ricocheted off his armor with a CLANG and, with less ferocity, pinged against the ceiling before coming back to the ground and skidding into some crates.

Canard growled, waltzing up to the source of the friendly fire and snatching the weapon out of Nosedive's hands.

"This is precisely why kids shouldn't tag along."

"Canard, easy," Wildwing warned. "It was an accident."

Nosedive had not backed down his return stare at Canard. "I'm not a kid."

Canard didn't respond to his statement, instead taking a step back with the weapon in hand. "He nearly took your head off, Wing, and you want him to come with us to take down the last remaining Saurian Overlord?!"

The other team members smartly kept their beaks shut, but watched the heated conversation intently.

Wildwing walked up to the two, still adorning his battlegear. "I told you Canard, he was a part of the deal. We stay together or we go together."

"Drake, Wildwing, he's going to get you or one of us killed, and that's going to be on you."

"You know, I'm getting really sick of being treated like a leftover cookie, here!" Nosedive interrupted, his arms crossing in front of him. "I don't need protecting and I'm not going to going to get anyone killed!"

Nosedive's usual happy demeanor had quickly soured, but he looked to Wildwing and added, "Sorry, bro, about the puck."

Wildwing, surprised at the apology, just nodded at his brother. As soon as he did, Nosedive turned and walked away from the group, heading towards the Aerowing.

The silence was heavy as he left, but Duke decided to speak up: "Canard, you sure know how ta make friends, eh?" Duke shot a meaningful look over to Mallory, but she ignored him, keeping her arms crossed in front of her and her head down.

Canard glared at him but did not respond. He walked over to Wildwing determinedly.

"You hear me, and you hear me once on this. That kid stays in the Aerowing when we get there, and he is NOT to be given a weapon, got it?"

Canard's voice had lowered since he was close to Wildwing, but through gritted teeth it sounded downright menacing.

Wildwing was not afraid of his friend and didn't give a damn about his captain status. But he nodded to the request because—quite frankly—he felt Nosedive would be safer in the plane, anyways.

He'd still give him a weapon for defense, but Canard didn't need to know about that.

After Wildwing's nod, Canard seemed at a loss of where to go to next. His anger was almost emanating off of him, but in a small facility like this it wasn't very easy to get any privacy. He finally sighed and walked past Wildwing, back towards the crates they had dug his battlegear out of. He sat down next to where his equipment was plugged in charging and began typing on his computer.

Wildwing couldn't tell if it was for show, and at this point didn't really care.

He pulled off the forearm armor and chest plate, placing them on the ground out of the way. The rest of the group had seemingly dispersed to do their own thing again.

"That was quite a move."

He looked up and saw Duke standing next to him suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere.

Wildwing shook off the surprise and shrugged. "No different than being a goalie, I guess."

"You an' Canard go way back, huh?"

The change in subject threw Wildwing off again, but he recovered. "Yeah, grew up together."

"He always like that wit' his friends?"

"He … has a lot of pride," Wildwing finally offered, glancing back at the tan mallard. "He and Dive have never gotten along."

Duke made a sound of acknowledgement but did not probe. Eventually he stood up from his leaning position against the wall. "Remin' me to stand behind you tomorrow," he added as he walked away.

Wildwing watched him, perplexed. His eyes wandered to see Tanya and Mallory sitting together, talking quietly. Grin was not far away, sitting cross-legged on the floor with his eyes shut, presumably meditating.

Sighing, he walked over to where his brother had disappeared to.

"Dive?" he called out softly, peering around the Aerowing.

"Up here."

Wildwing frowned, following the sound with his eyes. Nosedive was sitting on the wing of the large airship, nearly masked by the shadows.

"How'd you get up there?"

"I'm not eighty, Wing. There's a crate over there."

Wildwing glanced over and saw the crate in question. He went over and stood on it, using the extra height to help boost himself onto the wing. He grunted a bit to lift his bodyweight—boy did he need to work out again—but managed to get himself up without too much struggling.

He walked over to his younger brother and sat next to him, dangling his legs over the side. They sat together like that for a few minutes, neither saying anything.

"I miss Mom and Dad," Nosedive finally said at barely a whisper.

"Me too," Wildwing replied after a long pause.

"That's why were here," Nosedive added. "To see them again."

Wildwing nodded, his throat becoming tight as he stared at the far wall. On this side of the plane there wasn't much to see—the rest of the group was on the other side, where most of the living quarters had been set up.

It was quiet where they were, the area masked in the shadows of the large airship.

"I'm not going to mess this up, Wing. There's too much at stake." Nosedive's voice was quiet but determined when he spoke. Wildwing knew his brother well enough to know he meant every word.

"I know, Baby Bro." Wildwing brought his arm around Nosedive's shoulders, providing his younger brother a show of support. Nosedive glanced up at him and smiled, despite his seemingly depressed attitude.

"I am sorry about that puck," the blonde duck added again, his elbows resting on his legs and his hands holding his head up as his feet kicked back and forth repetitively.

Wildwing smirked slightly. "It's okay."

"Seriously, though, that was like the most sensitive trigger ever."

"I've been through worse."

It was a lighthearted retort to Nosedive's comment, but the statement itself held a lot more truth once it was said out loud. Both brothers were silent after that.

Wildwing swallowed hard as he adjusted his seatbelt in the giant airship. His dad had taught him how to fly when he was in high school—in fact, both he and Nosedive had the opportunity to pilot their dad's old propeller.

Canard had taken some time in the morning to go over the basics of the ship with him—which was surprisingly similar to the controls on his dad's plane—but no one could truly learn to fly this plane with one briefing. A top-of-the-line military airship was not a propeller aircraft. Not to mention they were about to alert every Monitor Tower within ten miles of their presence.

His next swallow was ever drier than the last.

"I didn't know you could get whiter, Wing."

Wildwing jolted at the words, turning next to him to see Duke. The former thief grinned at him cheekily as he walked to a chair farther to the side of the ship and sat down. Wildwing didn't answer him, instead looking back to the windshield in front of him. Outside, he could see Canard and Tanya gathering some last boxes of equipment.

After their mission was complete—and provided they were still alive—they would need to get as much of this equipment back to the Resistance to help take down the remaining Monitor Towers scattered throughout the cities. It was too much to bring on this mission, but they wanted to be able to pack quickly upon their return.

After they had succeeded.

"I take it this is a walk in the park for you?" Wildwing retorted, not intentionally harsh but still with a bite to it. Duke's constant sneaking up and cheeky talk was starting to even get to him, which was definitely saying something.

Duke didn't seem to take offense, if he even noticed at all. "It never is, but I'd never let you know it, ei'her." Duke smirked again at Wildwing, propping his feet up on the dashboard and turning his attention to Canard and Tanya as they walked up the ramp.

"You always this vague?"

"A hero that proclaims himself so is that much less of a hero."

Both Duke and Wildwing looked over to Grin, who apparently had been eavesdropping as he sat quietly in his chair. Wildwing shook his head.

"Never mind."

Once inside the ship, Canard walked to the back with his portable computer, running a scan through it. Tanya, with her own portable computer, came up next to Duke and plugged it in, typing almost ferociously on the keypad attached to the side of the ship.

After the two had entered, both Nosedive and Mallory followed. Mallory took her seat on the opposite side of Duke, her demeanor as cool and unreadable as ever.

Nosedive had been unusually quiet since his rather rough interaction with Canard the night before, but took his seat next to Grin in some rather svelte chest armor. Shaped similar to Mallory's—albeit designed for a male—the white armor appeared to fit to Nosedive like a glove and did not seem to limit his mobility at all.

Wildwing raised an eyebrow at him.

"Tanya figured it'd be good to not have a kid get shot to death on our mission," Nosedive answered his unasked question. "Plus, it's slammin' gear."

Wildwing rolled his eyes at his younger brother.

Tanya, who overheard his response, added, "Provided the drones, you know, shoot you in the chest only."

"I'll make sure to relay the info to them."

Canard had made his way back to the front of the ship, walking up next to Wildwing and checking the gauges on the large dashboard. He had been mostly ignoring the light conversation behind him but now turned to look at everyone.

"Are we ready?"

Tanya was the last to take a seat in the silence that followed. The others were already situated and did not respond to Canard. This was not a pre-game pep talk, and the question that was asked was not meant to be answered. They all silently waited for their next orders.

Canard did not hesitate: "Wildwing, close the ramp and start the engines."

Wildwing, who had been asked to be co-pilot with his previous training, nodded and flipped the necessary switches to get the Aerowing purring. He simultaneously pulled a lever, causing the side doors on the Aerowing to fold in and close.

"Tanya, release the hatch."

As the Aerowing roared to life and began to slowly rise off the ground, Tanya pressed a couple of buttons on her console, causing a large groaning above them. Bits of debris began to rain down on the Aerowing's roof, various thumps and thuds reverberating through the large airship.

They would be on their radar now.

"The Monitors are controlled by a computer in Dragaunus' headquarters. That's our target."

"Yeah, but no one's ever seen Dragaunus' headquarters," Duke retorted to the captain, his voice barely masking its uncertainty.

Canard smirked, almost waiting for the invitation. He reached into his satchel and pulled out the Drake DuCaine Mask. Wildwing watched the strange metal glimmer in the light as Canard placed it on.

The Mask recognized the interaction immediately and seemingly hummed to life. Its white exterior glowed and became gold, the tiny circuitry within the borders of it lighting up and blinking. The eyes glowed red as Canard pressed something on the side of it, the tan mallard's expression now completely hidden.

"I have," Canard answered, his voice even more gruff under the guise of the Mask. "Now prepare yourselves, we're almost there," he added, his beaming eyes never wavering from the landscape in front of him.

Wildwing followed his gaze, seeing only red desolation. After they had pulled out of DuCaine Metropolis and away from the detection of flying drones, the once suburban outskirts of the city were nothing more than demolished wastelands.

Without the shelter of the tall buildings or the lush forests, the once open neighborhoods that were prime real estate were now death traps, both from enemy watchers and the brutal elements.

Mallory did not hesitate to voice her incredulousness. "Here? We're twenty clicks from nowhere!"

"The Master Tower has an invisibility field around it—Dragaunus' cloak of darkness." Canard paused briefly before divulging, "And we're about to pass through it."

Everyone knew about the cloak. It was what took down the Guardian. If Canard was accurate, then Wildwing had guessed right: the Master Tower had taken enough damage that it could not return to space, and instead hid itself right in the middle of everything.

Suddenly a brief glow of force field penetration coated the airship, its thin gold band of energy a stark contrast to the monochromatic red of the land. As quickly as the band of energy dissipated, a seemingly nonexistent fog decided to clear, revealing piles of rubble and a huge, foreboding silhouette of a massive Monitor Tower. Looming ahead of the Aerowing it plumed a massive amount of smoke, covering the sky in its pollution.

The group of ducks stood anxiously at the front of the Aerowing, watching the Master Tower seemingly materialize out of nowhere as they entered into the cloaking field.

"Canard, how did you know?" Tanya asked, her voice in awe as they entered the command tower's refuge.

"I saw it with the Mask, after retrieving it from Twin Beaks. It was brief—en route back to base—but it was unmistakable. That was when I realized we had a shot at this.

"My only hope was that it was incapacitated enough that they weren't jumping locations."

"Well ... you were right," Duke answered when he finally found his voice. He glanced at the captain. "What else does that Mask do, eh?"

Canard kept his gaze on the target before them. "It scans and recognizes almost every type of matter and energy in existence."

"And you couldn't tell this to us before because..?" Nosedive retaliated, his voice still raw from the unresolved tension between the two.

Canard, to his credit, answered him. "This Mask may be the only item we have against Dragaunus, and I've barely begun to discover its capabilities. But I don't know if its energy signature can be recognized by the Saurians. I didn't want to unnecessarily use its resources until we were ready."

Tanya harrumphed. "You could've just, you know, explained that to us."

"I wasn't taking any chances out in the open. The less that was communicated the better."

"Well, we're here now," Wildwing moderated, his voice much more somber than usual.

The rest of the ducks remained silent after that, each watching the approaching fortress with both anxiety and determination. The spirited banter from the night before, as they had all sat around and ate warm stew, seemed like an eon ago.

These strangers each had a huge burden on their shoulders; a task with which no one would want to take because they'd be too afraid of failing.

And yet, here they all were.

There was no turning back.

fin