The Broken Doll

[ragdoll]

You’d think that it would be easy for someone who was already dead to convincingly play dead; unfortunately, as Ragdoll had discovered, this couldn’t be further from the truth. The problem was, although she could remain perfectly still with very little effort, this was completely ignored by the guards and scientists who passed her cell due to being indistinguishable from when she fell asleep at night. It didn’t take her too long to realise that the only way she could convincingly pull off this subterfuge was to remain still for a very long time indeed, and so, pausing only to detach both of her arms, she settled down on the floor of her cell for the long haul. Sure it was boring, but at least it gave her a chance to once again ponder her situation.

She’d been here for six days that she could remember, although given that she couldn’t remember anything at all before that it was possible that she’d been a prisoner of this laboratory for far longer. From the various conversations that took place around her (although never with her, as anything she cried out was ignored) she’d been able to piece together that some kind of experiment had taken place involving her, which had been considered a failure (presumably due to her being now technically dead). Sadly they had never referred to her by any name other than ‘Ragdoll’, and thus she had been forced to adopt this for herself for the time being. It had soon become apparent to Ragdoll that she had to leave this place as soon as possible, for if the experiment really had been a failure then surely it was only a matter of time before they decided to dispose of the result.

“I think the Ragdoll is dead,” commented a voice that she recognised as one of the guards after almost an entire day of waiting in perfect inertia, “again I mean.”

“And what makes this time different from all the others?” asked a second voice, which Ragdoll recognised as belonging to a duck scientist who occasionally came by to monitor her.

“I’ve been checking back every few hours, and she hasn’t moved in almost a day. It looks like whatever was reanimating her has finally worn off.”

“Fine fine,” muttered the duck in a distinctly bored tone, “call it in.” After a few seconds there was a burst of static which she recognised as the sound of a transceiver being activated, following which the guard began to explain the situation to whoever was on the other end. She could hear the voice on the other end replying, however from her vantage point on the cell floor she couldn’t make out what the tinny voice was actually saying.

“Doctor Finklestein says there’s nothing else we can learn from her in either case,” stated the guard as another burst of static signalled the conversation having ended, “orders are to dispose of her.” Ragdoll barely managed to suppress a gasp at this, and if she’d had a pulse she was sure it would have been racing faster than if she’d been running for an hour. Still, in spite of her nerves, she remained perfectly still as the doors to her cell opened with a pneumatic hiss, and the sound of heavy footfalls signalled that the duo had entered her cell.

“Help me get her on to a gurney,” instructed the duck, “we can’t carry her all the way to the incinerator the way parts are dropping off her.”

“Eww, you’re right,” said the guard, “look, her arms have already fallen off.”

“Well... pick them up; we can’t leave them here.”

“Why me!?”

“Because I outrank you, that’s why.” Even though her eyes were still firmly shut, Ragdoll could practically see the smirk on the duck’s face as he said this. Warm hands, presumably belonging to the guard, grabbed hold of her loose arms and unceremoniously dumped them onto a flat surface behind him, which was presumably the gurney that the scientist had mentioned. He did this as quickly as possible, clearly wanting to minimize the amount of contact he had with the deceased limbs, and thus thankfully didn’t notice one of the hands pilfer his flashlight as they passed it.

“Okay, let’s lift her on three,” muttered the guard, his tone indicating that he wasn’t at all pleased with what he was doing, “one... two...” He never got to three, for at that moment Ragdoll did two things at once. One of her legs shot out in a wide arc, catching the scientist unaware and sending him crashing down to the ground. At the same moment, the arm holding the flashlight brought it crashing down on the guard’s head, knocking him out cleanly in a single blow. He crumpled, landing on top of the unfortunate duck and knocking him out in the process.

“I did it!” gasped Ragdoll in joyous surprise, clambering to her feet and quickly stepping over the unconscious men to where her arms waited for her. This was the trump card of her escape plan, the one detail that she knew and her captors did not; the experiment had not entirely failed. Sure, she might be dead, but she had a superpower to show for it. She could detach and reattach her limbs at will, and even control them separately when they weren’t connected to her. It was fortunate that she’d made this discovery about herself in the dead of night during a fit of violent frustration at her seemingly hopeless situation, for it had allowed her to conceal it from the scientists, who only came during the day (the night guards just hadn’t been paying close attention, too distracted by their game of poker to actually do their job).

“Then again,” murmured Ragdoll, kneeling down beside the unconscious guard and rapidly searching through his pockets until she found the electronic key card that she’d noticed unlocked most of the doors in this place, “perhaps I should get all the way out before I celebrate.” Unfortunately, at that moment, any hopes she might have had about making her way out undetected were shattered. Apparently there was a hidden camera somewhere in the vicinity, for a computerised voice began to blare out at a near-defening volume.

Prisoner: Ragdoll has escaped! Alerting all personnel! Prisoner: Ragdoll has escaped! Alerting all personnel!

Ragdoll sprang across to the door and slid the key card into the lock, biting her lip nervously as the seconds ticked by until finally, with an elevator-like ping, the door slid open. On the other side of the door was a long corridor lined with dozens of dozens of doors, most of which were labelled with complex, scientific terms that she couldn’t even begin to guess the meaning of. At the opposite end of the corridor was a sliding door identical to the one she’d come through and it was this that she headed for, however she was barely half way down the corridor when the sound of rapidly approaching footfalls hit her ears. Picking a door at random, she flung it open and threw herself inside, slamming it shut behind her. This turned out to be not a moment too soon, for no sooner had the door shut did she hear the ping that signalled the door she’d been heading for had opened, followed quickly by the pounding footsteps of several guards presumably rushing towards her cell.

Waiting only long enough for the last person to pass her hiding place, Ragdoll quickly slipped out into the corridor again, silently sprinting through the main door before any of the guards had a chance to look back. This door opened onto a large stairwell, with steps leading up as well as down and, much to her horror, no indication of where she currently was in relation to the ground.

“Well,” whispered Ragdoll to herself, flattening herself against the wall in case the guards had already realised she was gone and were about to come crashing back through, “I suppose that if I’m above ground and go up further, it’ll be a lot easier to get back down than it would be to get back up if I was underground and went deeper.” Confident with this logic, she hurried over to the ascending staircase and took the steps two at a time, completely ignoring the various doors leading off into various floors until she had reached the very top and found herself standing before a locked door marked ‘roof access’.

“I can’t go back,” said Ragdoll, the sound of footsteps thundering up the stairs behind her making this perfectly clear, “so this will have to do...” Feeling a lot less confident now than she had a few minutes ago, she slid the key card into the door and bit her lip anxiously, each passing second seeming more like an hour as she waited for the lock to either accept or deny the card. Thankfully, fortune seemed to be with her that day, for after a moment or so the door opened with another ping, and she was able to emerge out onto the rooftop. Unfortunately, any thoughts she had about the fates being on her side were quelled a moment later as she realised that there was no way back down other than the door she had come through; a door which was now blocked by a large, burly, feline guard.

“End of the line, Ragdoll,” he wheezed, causing her to take an involuntary step back just to escape from the unbelievably noxious odour that was his breath, “you’ve nowhere else to go.”

“I know exactly where I’ve got to go,” stated Ragdoll, taking another (this time voluntary) step back away from the guard.

“Yeah? And where’s that?”

“Anywhere other than with you.” Closing her eyes, she stepped backwards off the rooftop, a sense of slight exhilaration filling her as she felt herself begin to plummet towards the ground. She heard the guard swear loudly above her as she fell, and couldn’t help but smile at having angered him so. This smile persisted even as she hit the ground below with a thump. Ragdoll didn’t care that her arms went one way and her legs the other; all she cared about was that she was free.

She was long gone by the time the guards reached the scene, the abandoned key card the only sign that she’d ever been there at all.

[Dreamchild]

***

"Hey, look!" a little girl in her ninth year exclaimed. She was just as excited as any kid would be when they caught sight of one of their idols. "It's Dreamchild!" She pointed at Dreamchild, who was on the other side of a street. Dreamchild, being one of the youngest members of the Dream League, was often stopped by her fans. Without question, Dreamchild was most popular with little boys and (especially) girls, presumably because being such a young member of a superhero team guaranteed young fans to look up to her as a role-model.

Dreamchild rolled her eyes, though no one would notice because her eyes were white behind her mask, and she soon found herself approached by a group of kids, including the girl that pointed her out. The kids had their autograph books ready. Dreamchild appreciated that the Dream League had its supporters, but at the same time, she couldn't understand why so many kids wanted her autograph. Ever since the Dream League started getting popular, the fans have been something of mild nuisance. Then again, Dreamchild admittedly liked making her fans happy with a signature, even if the notion of having fans was still bizarre to her.

The girl signed the autograph books as quickly yet neatly as she could. Her signature was elegant and fanciful, so much that tracing her handwriting to Alice Liddell would have been difficult. After she signed the books, a boy who obviously thought she was pretty started asking her questions.

"What's She-Wolf really like?" he asked. "Is she mean?"

If Dreamchild was in a rush, she would have excused herself and leave her fans. But tonight, there didn't seem to be any present danger in the city, and so she decided to stay and answer any questions. Nothing wrong with killing time, she figured..

"She-Wolf does have a temper, but she is a good woman."

The little girl who pointed Dreamchild out was next to ask a question. "What's your favorite color?"

The heroine smiled at the query, and gestured to her costume. "Blue and white."

Dreamchild continued to answer the fans' repetitive yet flattering questions. They were next a dark alley, on the sidewalk.

[ragdoll]

Unfortunately, Ragdoll had been so single-mindedly focused on her plan to escape from the laboratory that she’d failed to consider one vitally important detail: she had absolutely no-where to go once she was outside. It had simply failed to occur to her that having no idea of her identity would also mean that she had no safe house to flee to, and no friends that she could turn to. And so it was that as soon as she was done putting herself back together she simply picked up a direction at random and started running, keeping to the alleyways so as not to attract unnecessary attention. She didn’t stop running until she was absolutely certain that she wasn’t being pursued; at which point she finally slumped against a wall to regain her strength.

“Well,” murmured Ragdoll, breathing heavily out of habit rather than an actual need to take in oxygen, “whatever happens now, at least I’m free.” She smiled for a moment or so, however it quickly faltered as she glanced down at the clothing she was wearing. Ever since she’d woken up in her cell she’d been wearing the same outfit: a rather shabby, grey smock that looked as if it had been worn by several other people before her without having touched so much as a drop of water in between them. Ragdoll wouldn’t have been able to imagine a viler garment if she’d tried.

“It looks like I’ll have to do this alone,” she said to herself as she clambered to her feet, a resigned look on her face, “I’m not sure even I would help me if I saw myself right now.” Sighing, she made her way towards the end of the alleyway, carefully remaining in the shadows as she peered out to make sure that the coast was clear.

The coast was not clear. The coast could not have been less clear if there had been an entire police blockade there waiting for her. Standing there was the very guard that she had leapt off the rooftop to escape, along with two of his associates, the three of them frantically looking around in search of her. Barely able to keep herself from squealing in alarm, Ragdoll took off in the opposite direction as fast as her legs could carry her. She burst out of the other end of the alleyway, and before she could register that a large crowd of children had formed there since she last passed by she had already crashed into them.

[Dreamchild]

Chaos ensued. Dreamchild was knocked back by the sudden collision and landed on her rump. "Goodness!" she exclaimed as she fell. She wasn't injured, but she was definitely startled. And she fell with such a velocity that her hair actually flipped over her head and covered her face. It wasn't the proudest moment of her superheroic career, to say the least.

The children reacted differently: after regaining their standing after being collided into, they took one good look at the offender, screamed in fright, and ran off. Some dropped their autograph books in the hustle (even fewer returned to collect them), and soon Dreamchild was left alone with the stranger.

Dreamchild had yet to have a good look at the tall dead woman. The Dream Come True took her time to levitate to her feet and slick back her hair to behind her head. Her hair once again took a pear-shaped form, and all was normal. Except that Dreamchild also screamed when she got a good look of the woman. "OH!"

She jumped back and covered her mouth with her right hand, as her wide white eyes stared at the woman. It looked too much to be a mere costume, or even makeup. She didn't speak, she only stared.

[ragdoll]

One rather unfortunate side effect of her deathly state was that it had made her hearing incredibly oversensitive. True, this meant she could hear things that had previously been silent to her, however this also meant that loud enough noises could cause her actual pain... and the sound of a whole group of children screaming in fear as they ran from a reanimated corpse was as loud as they come. Ragdoll buckled over in pain, hands clamped tightly over her ears in a vain attempt to block out some of the cacophony.

“I’m sorry,” cried out Ragdoll as the crowd began to rapidly disperse, “I’m not going to hurt you.” Fortunately, it didn’t take long for most of the children to flee in search of ‘safety’, and Ragdoll was left alone with a strange girl who was concealing her face behind a mask. She seemed oddly familiar in some way; perhaps she had known her (or at least of her) back when she was alive.

“I’m sorry,” repeated Ragdoll as this girl screamed as well, instinctively flicking her hair forward to try and hide her striking appearance, “I just... I’ll go.” She turned to head back into the alleyway, before remembering that the guards she was fleeing from were down there and turning back. Hiding her face behind her hair and hands, she accidentally pushed past Dreamchild as she fled, heading for the next alleyway on the other side of the road.

[Dreamchild]

As Dreamchild watched and heard the pale, scarred, unusual woman, she realized that this woman was probably a fish out of water. A dead fish that inexplicably was able to walk about, talk, and all-around act like a sentient, living person, but a fish out of water nonetheless. The way this woman flicked her hair forward to try and hide her visage, it was clear to Dreamchild that this woman really didn't mean any harm, nor did she intend to frighten.

The stranger started running through the alleyway she came from, but then turned back and ran with her face covered by her hair and hands. In her dash, she inadvertently pushed past Dreamchild. The girl didn't fall down this time, nor did she allow the push to upset her. Dreamchild watched until the woman vanished into the alleyway on the other side of the road, then the blonde looked back to the alleyway. Was this young woman running away from something, or someone? The sound of approaching footsteps in the alleyway supported this thought. Instead of walking away, Dreamchild stood her ground, ready for whatever would happen. This was too curious to pass up!

[ragdoll]

Ragdoll had barely vanished down they alleyway when the two laboratory guards emerged from the opposite one. Fortunately they didn’t seem to have located their quarry yet, for they were still moving at a relatively sedate pace as they searched. They suddenly stopped in their tracks however as they caught sight of Dreamchild standing before them, recognising her as one of the more powerful members of the Dream League. The two hurriedly conversed for a moment or so, debating whether or not to engage her in conversation, until finally the same feline guard whom Ragdoll had encountered on the roof stepped forward.

“You there,” he began, pointing at Dreamchild as if there were anyone else in the area he could have been talking to, “we’re pursuing an extremely dangerous criminal who has escaped from D’Arque Asylum!” The second guard looked confused for a moment and turned to face his associate, opening his mouth as if about to say something, however was silenced by a swift elbow to the ribs by the feline guard.

“Have you seen her?” continued the feline guard, raising one hand to the approximate height of Ragdoll, “she’s about this tall, with long, brown hair and pale skin.”

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild watched the two men step out of the alleyway and into direct light. Of the two, it was the anthropomorphic feline who was clearly the most intimidating, and potentially the more unpleasant to talk to. Her suspicions were confirmed when the feline spoke to her less as a dignified young lady and more as an object.

But Dreamchild's mind was already secretly at work. The moment she saw the men approach, she she tried to establish a mental connection with that strange, tall woman. She didn't know if this would have worked, but she tried regardless.

<<These men are looking for you.>> In her first few years, simultaneously listening to a conversation in person and speaking telepathically was difficult. But Dreamchild was now able to multitask in such a way. <<They say you are a dangerous criminal who escaped from D'Arque Asylum. Who are you, really? I can help you, but you need to tell me the truth. Talk to me by thinking; don't speak out loud or these men will hear you.>>

Dreamchild needed to be convinced on whom to trust: the feline, or the apparent fugitive. Waiting for an answer from the runaway (there was one), Dreamchild bought herself some extra time to responding to the feline. "I'm terribly sorry, but I've seen a lot of women in this city who are that tall, and with brown hair and white skin, too. Could you please be more specific?" Her tone was polite, as to not arouse suspicion. Of course, she wasn't dumb. She knew perfectly well that she saw whom they were looking for.

[ragdoll]

Ragdoll was just reaching the end of the current alleyway and was about to dash across the street to the next one when she suddenly felt a strange presence intruding upon her mind. The sensation was so shocking that she was stopped right in her tracks, tilting her head slightly as she concentrated on the voice that was now speaking to her from within her own thoughts.

<<I don’t think I’m from the Asylum,>> thought Ragdoll uncertainly, not at all sure whether she was supposed to think in some specific way to get her mysterious contact to hear her, <<at least, it looked more like a laboratory than anything else.>> It was very strange to be communicating with someone without speaking aloud. The urge to open her mouth when she responded was so great that she had actually had to clamp her hands over it to ensure that she remained silent; after all, if her pursuers really were just around the corner then speaking would be signing her own death sentence.

<<Please, help me,>> pleaded Ragdoll, hoping that her tone of desperation would be properly conveyed in her thoughts <<I can’t answer your question as I don’t know who I am, but I don’t feel like anyone dangerous!>>

*

“Trust me,” said the non-feline guard, taking a quick side-step away from his associate to avoid another elbow in the ribs, “you’d know her if you’d seen her.”

“She’s probably avoiding exposed areas,” muttered the feline guard to his accomplice, “come on, let’s head down that next alleyway.” Paying no further heed, the two stepped around her, preparing to continue their search.

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild would have frowned in sympathy if she wasn't talking to the guards. But she had to keep up a 'game face,' to use a word from the vernacular. Whoever this stranger was, she sounded even more confused than Dreamchild. She sounded helpless, cornered, afraid, anything but a so-called 'dangerous criminal who escaped from D'Arque Asylum.' If this woman truly was dangerous and a force to be reckoned with, then Dreamchild would simply take care of her. But Dreamchild knew that she would be scared and cornered, too, if scientists ever learned of Alice's psychic powers. The decision was simple: the girl would trust her heart and assist the escapee. Her first act of assistance would be to send the guards on a fool's errand.

<<All right,>> she said to the escapee. <<I will tell you when to follow me. Do exactly as I tell you, when I tell you.>>

"Oh!" Dreamchild exclaimed in feigned realization. She hoped that the guards would stop in their tracks and listen to her. "Now that you mention it, I did see a strange woman. I thought she was in a Halloween costume, but I just thought of it--Halloween is a good half of a year away, isn't it?" She smiled and continued, pointing to a specific direction. "I saw her run that way. There's a graveyard a few blocks in that direction. Maybe she wanted to look there? I don't know for sure, but I'm certain she's around there."

She hated lying, but it was necessary in the situation. She would gently and briefly tap into the scientists' minds and give them a little urge to obey her 'suggestion.' The mental manipulation was nothing serious. It just filled the target(s) with trust in her words. The effect would wear off in about thirty minutes, with how gently Dreamchild handled their minds. "You'd better hurry, sirs!"

Dreamchild's mental voice wasn't fake. <<When these men run away, I will take you someplace safe. I suppose you don't have to trust me, but... whatever happened in that laboratory, I want to help you remember. I don't think you're dangerous.>>

[ragdoll]

Ragdoll breathed a sigh of relief (although she didn’t technically need to breathe in order to survive she’d noticed that she tended to breathe anyway on instinct unless she specifically stopped herself) as the mysterious voice in her head agreed to help her. The only problem was that she wasn’t entirely sure who the voice belonged to. The most obvious owner was the blonde girl whom she’d bumped into before, however she’d heard so little of her actual voice that she had no way to be sure of this.

<<I will,>> confirmed Ragdoll mentally as the voice instructed to her to do exactly as she was told, <<just let me know when to move.>> Given her current status as a fugitive it seemed that she had no real choice but to trust this mysterious voice, after all, if it was an enemy who could access her mind then she didn’t have a hope of escaping anyway. Besides, it was nice to think that there was at least one person in this city who wasn’t trying to drag her, kicking and screaming, back to the incinerators.

<<Thank you,” added Ragdoll, smiling in spite of the fact that her hands were still clamped over her mouth, <<somewhere safe is exactly what I need right now.>>

*

“The graveyard you say?” asked the feline guard, eyes glazing over for a moment as the honey-coated touch of Dreamchild’s powers tried to convince him that these words were true, “why would she go there?”

“She is dead,” observed the other guard, whose expression was almost an exact mirror of his accomplice’s, “maybe it’s like an instinct thing.” It didn’t particularly make sense that she’d head in that direction; he simply had an overwhelming urge to do what the girl before him said.

“Yeah, you’re right,” said the feline guard groggily, scratching his head with one paw in confusion, “well... let’s go then!” The two took off without another word, disappearing down the street as fast as their strangely resistant legs would carry them. Neither had any idea why they were doing what Dreamchild suggested, it just simply didn’t occur to them not to.

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild knew that the escapee was still nearby because of her mental thoughts. She watched the guards race out of sight. The coast was clear when she mentally spoke to the fugitive once more. <<You may come back now. They're gone.>>

While she waited for the woman to return, Dreamchild closed her eyes and pressed her right index finger and middle finger against the side of her forehead. Without telling the woman she would assist, she established telepathic contact with a certain Dreamer.

[ragdoll]

Ragdoll crept back along the alleyway very slowly, peeking her head out into the street to make sure that it was clear before rapidly drawing it in again, just in case the guards were still around. She repeated this twice more before finally emerging out onto the street again, breathing a sigh of relief at having evaded capture once again.

“That was you speaking in my head, wasn’t it?” she asked, acutely aware that if she was mistaken and this girl screamed at the sight of her again then it would bring the guards straight back. That wasn’t to say that she any idea who else the mysterious voice in her head could have been, however it was still best to be careful about these things.

“In either case, thank you,” Ragdoll quickly added, still anxiously holding back from the girl, “you could have turned me in, and for that I owe you my life.” She wasn’t entire sure that her rescuer had heard her however, for the girl had closed her eyes and was pressing two fingers against her temple as if deep in thought.

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild heard the woman just as she finished speaking through her mind. She slowly opened her eyes and gazed upon the living corpse. Dreamchild's muscled tensed slightly, despite not meaning to. She was astounded and had many questions, but she decided to start small and work her way up.

Dreamchild nodded. "Yes, it was me. You're welcome, but you needn't thank me yet--we still need to get out of here." The girl with the English accent made no effort to step closer to the woman, and kept her own distance. She looked behind her shoulder to make sure that the two were still alone. "We're going to board a special aircraft called the Star Wisher." She looked back to the tall dead as she finished. "Then we'll take you someplace where you won't be hunted." After an awkward moment of staring, Dreamchild asked, "What's your name?"

[ragdoll]

Ragdoll breathed yet another sigh of relief at the girl’s words, glad that this child was indeed the Good Samaritan who had mentally assisted her. A place where she could go without being hunted was definitely what she needed right now, and the very idea that such a place existed was enough to ignite at least a small spark of hope for the future.

“My name is...” She paused mid-sentence, casting around for some other name to use instead of the one given to her by the scientists. Scanning the street quickly, her eyes fell upon a ragged, weather-beaten poster for a movie which, given the state of the poster, had presumably been released a long time ago. Of course it wasn’t the movie itself that interested Ragdoll, it was the name of the actress and actor who were starring in it: Sally Sparrow and Quentin O’Hara.

"Sally,” she finished, focusing her attention back on the costumed hero “my name is Sally O’Hara.”

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild remained silent as she thought the name to herself. Sally O'Hara. Well, it certainly was a feminine name, and she had no reason to not trust the woman. The girl accepted the name with a nod and a smile.

"Well, Ms. Sally, I will help you to the best of my ability." She turned and looked up to the sky. "I do hope they come soon."

[Duck Avenger]

Duck Avenger just happened to be piloting the Star Wisher at the time he received a mental transmission from the ever-psychic Dreamchild. It disturbed the Avenger how much he had gotten used to being spoken to through his mind, but after hanging around with partners like Dreamchild for most of the year, the supernatural stuff was easier to accept with each passing day.

<<Copy that, DC,>> Duck Avenger thought back as he steered the aircraft. Any Dreamer with aviation knowledge control the Star Wisher, but Duck Avenger made it clear that he loved to be the pilot whenever he could. But Duck Avenger wasn't alone; Dr. Delbert Doppler was also present, though the Avenger didn't know if Dreamchild contacted him.

"Didja hear that?" said the duck, only looking to Delbert every few seconds, so he could keep his eyes ahead. "Dreamchild just told me to meet her on the corner of 5th, in the main avenue. I'm gonna check it out... if you don't mind."

Duck Avenger, being among the more temperamental and cocky members of the Dream League, had to be very careful whenever he was within earshot and sight of the doctor. The Avenger hated walking on eggshells for anybody, but he made an exception for Doppler, because he would rather keep his hide intact by not instigating Delbert into a monstrous transformation that was known for uncontrolled damage.

[Savage]

Delbert, who sat in the passenger seat, shook his head at Duck Avenger's question. Although he had heard noting, he didn't need to ask his avian cohort to explain exactly what he'd heard, as the Avenger went onto explain about Dreamchild's summons. Well, if that was the case, then he felt they should see what she wanted.

"Oh no, not at all." Delbert amiably replied. He knew that Dreamchild would use her telepathy to 'speak' with her teammates, remarkably enough. "I hope she's not in any trouble," He continued. "What if it's one of those supervillains you and the others told me about?" Aside from Taurus Bulba, he had yet to encounter any of the League's other foes. All things considered, while he himself didn't have much to fear from most of them (or so he believed), he was concerned for Dreamchild's safety.

[ragdoll]

Ragdoll, or Sally as she’d now decided to call herself, could only assume that the girl had contacted someone else for assistance in the same manner she’d used to speak to her in the alleyway, for she had not shown any visible signs of having called for help. She stood there in awkward silence for a moment or so, entirely unsure of what, if anything, she should say. It wasn’t like there was any set etiquette for when someone was saving your life, and even if there was Sally wouldn’t have remembered it anyway.

It was rather strange when it came to what she could and couldn’t remember. Anything involving her own past was a complete blur, as if it had been forcibly scrubbed out of her mind. Outside details however, such as spelling and mathematics, seemed to have survived pretty much intact. A good thing too, after all she’d never have been able to escape if her mind had been drained completely. Beyond that it was more random whether or not she remembered something, although she did find that she tended to recognise things if she saw them, even if she couldn’t picture them in her mind beforehand.

“So who exactly is coming?” asked Ragdoll in order to fill up the silence, “are they like you? What I mean is, do they have special powers too?” She supposed that technically it would have been more accurate to ask ‘are they like us’; however it felt very strange to think of herself in such a manner.

[Duck Avenger]

Duck Avenger nodded in agreement with Doppler. Man, was he such a huge contrast with Savage! They really were two completely different beings. One brutal, the other bookish; one affable with a penchant for knowledge, the other penchant for snapping a femur in half and using it as drumsticks on a drum set, part of an apocalyptic rock band of chaos and destruction. Okay, okay, Duck Avenger didn't know Savage that much, and wasn't sure Savage did stuff like that... and he intended to keep it that way. Ignorance is bliss, and so is keeping femurs intact!

"Okay!" Duck Avenger said, determined to find out what Dreamchild wants. "Let's go!"

It wasn't long before the Star Wisher arrived at where Dreamchild specified. The aircraft grounded as close to the alleyway as possible. The alley was of course too narrow for a safe landing, so he parked it as nearby as possible. He opened the rear hatch, walked out, and waited for Doppler to follow before pressing a button on the remote to close it. With a *BEEP BEEP!* usually reserved for a car, the Star Wisher was locked. Hey, even superheroes had to worry about grand theft Starwishing!

"This way," he said to Doppler, hearing more of Dreamchild's mental instruction. They didn't have to walk far; the Avenger found Dreamchild, standing beside a woman who really looked like she overdid it with the makeup. He tried not to be so hard on goths, but shouldn't this stuff normally be reserved for Halloween? Still, he decided to be nice.

"Who's your friend, DC?" He examined her stitches up close. They were pretty realistic, he must admit. "Was there a sale at Hot Topic?"

[Savage]

"Right!" Delbert concurred with his cohort. When Duck Avenger bought the Star Wisher in for a landing, they both disembarked and began the search for Dreamchild. The canine trailed after Duck Avenger, content to follow his lead.

From his observations of the bird whenever he interacted with the rest of the team, Delbert had come to notice that Duck Avenger would curb his normally hot temper when in his presence. He (accurately) guessed that this was due to Duck Avenger not wanting to trigger his powers and the emergence of his far more aggressive alter ego. Which was fine by Delbert. There were some situations in which Savage's presence wasn't required, as far as he was concerned.

They finally came upon Dreamchild, standing in the alleyway with a strange woman. He stopped in his tracks, startled. Was she a supervillain? Adjusting his glasses, Delbert appraised the woman who was nearly as tall as himself, wondering if he was really seeing what he thought he was. She looked human, but something was... off about her appearance. The stitches were unusual enough, but her stark white skin was what was really strange. It was a shade that one would associate with a corpse. He had had the misfortune of seeing a dead body before, and it was not an experience he wanted to repeat anytime soon.

While Donald assumed that she merely wore makeup, even going as far as to examine her stitches up close, Delbert came to a different conclusion, one that caused him to give a sharp intake of breath. "M-m-miss? Are you alright?" He asked, staring wide-eyed at Ragdoll and wringing his hands in his nervousness. "Y-you appear to be deceased -- diseased -- I mean, you seem to be sick!" He let out an uneasy, strangled chuckle.

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild was looking around from where she stood, hoping that Duck Avenger would arrive soon. The longer Sally was out and about in Epcot City, the more she was vulnerable to being caught. Dreamchild knew that her 'recommendation' to the guards wouldn't last forever. But even with a lot on her mind, she continued to be polite. She looked up to the tall, dead woman, and answered her question.

"We are waiting for my partner, Duck Avenger. He is piloting the Star Wisher, which is like an aeroplane. And a few of my partners have powers, like me. But I'm the only psychic in my group." After a short pause, she explained herself more in depth. "I am part of the Dream League. Do you know what that is?" Even if Sally knew what it was, Dreamchild continued regardless. "We are vigilantes who fight for justice, and we combat with evil. I suppose we're what you might call superheroes, as I've been called." She smiled modestly. "But that's a silly title."

She looked beyond Sally, hearing the arrival of the Star Wisher. Though the Star Wisher wasn't as loud as a normal plane's jet, it lacked subtlety. Dreamchild looked up to Sally again. "They're here. We should wait until they meet us."

That didn't take long; Duck Avenger arrived, accompanied with Dr. Delbert. Duck Avenger spoke without hesitation, and without thought, as was often the case. Dreamchild couldn't help but smile at the Avenger's ignorance. She nodded at Dr. Delbert's accurate perception. She took a step closer to Sally, standing by her side, obviously intending to comfort her.

"She is dead, I'm afraid. But she can still think, talk, and move. She was held captive in a laboratory, and I volunteered to help her. If you disagree with my actions, you may discuss it with me later. But, if I may be bold, I think we should get her out of the city. She's being hunted." She exchanged determined yet pleading looks between Duck Avenger and Delbert. "Please help her."

[ragdoll]

“The Dream League?” repeated Ragdoll quietly, tilting her head slightly as she thought it over. She got the distinct impression that she’d heard the name before, however any details about it had been wiped away with the rest of her memory. Fortunately the girl helpfully filled in this gap for her, and she nodded to show that she understood.

“That’s certainly a good cause to fight for, if you have to fight for something,” said Sally, wringing her hands nervously as she did so. In spite of Dreamchild’s insistence that he was a friend, she was rather anxious about the imminent arrival of the Duck Avenger. Just because the girl was willing to accept her in spite of her post-mortem status it didn’t mean that her teammates would be as welcoming. What if they were repulsed by the idea of her accompanying her, or even saw her as some kind of abomination that needed to be destroyed? She instinctively cowered away slightly as the duo finally appeared, the doubtful expression on the Duck’s face and the nervous expression on that of the dog doing very little to calm her nerves.

She wasn’t exactly sure what ‘Hot Topic’ was, however judging from the context she was fairly confident it was some kind of shop, which indicated that the Duck didn’t think she was actually dead. His companion was not as naive however, and after gasping in alarm eventually managed to stammer out a question about her health. Fortunately it seemed that he was more cautious and inquisitive about her condition than actually fearful, however the duck’s reaction still remained to be seen. She opened her mouth to reply to their questions, but before she could get any words out Dreamchild leapt in and replied for her.

“Please,” added Ragdoll as Dreamchild finished, alternating between looking down at Duck Avenger and looking up at the dog with an imploring expression, “I don’t have anywhere else to go.”

[Duck Avenger]

Delbert acted like this woman wasn't a goth at all, but was stone cold dead. Dreamchild outright stated that she was stone cold dead. Still not satisfied, the duck gently took the tall woman's small hand and held it. It felt stone cold dead. He then carefully pressed one of his thick fingers against her wrist, feeling for a pulse that just wouldn't come. He trembled, slowly at first, but then he pulsated into a violent shiver. He jumped back and pointed a trembling finger at her, wide-eyed and trembling with emotion. His feathers were white as snow, but if he was a human he would have been white with fear.

"WAK! She is dead!!" He kept his distance and started calling her less than polite names, not out of spite, but out of fright. "She's a zombie! Did she bite you?" he said, directed to Dreamchild. "She's dead! She's undead! And she... she's..."

Duck Avenger had calmed down the longer he stared at her. Her pleading expression and her large eyes possessed an inherent sadness that the Avenger only then saw. Already ashamed by his outbursts, the duck's expression softened considerably, and even expressed sympathy.

"... And she's probably scared, alone, and has nowhere to go." Arrested by guilt and shame, he looked away and said softly, "I'm sorry."

Recalling what Dreamchild said, this woman was being hunted. His face hardened in determination, he looked up to Delbert, who was closer to him. "Nobody likes being a guinea pig in a science lab, right?" He braved a few steps closer to the dead woman. Thankfully, she didn't seem so terrifying when viewed as a delicate fish out of water, not a zombie out for brain a la king. Wanting to earn the woman's forgiveness, and wanting to show off how compassionate he could be, he smiled as affably as he could, and took Sally by the hand. He gently patted it with his other hand. "Don't worry! We'll take you somewhere safe. We can ask questions later, but now let's get outta here." Eat your heart out, Sunshine.

The Avenger released his grip on the hand and turned. He walked briskly and pointed to the direction he was heading. "Let's go! Let's get outta here! To the Star Wisher!" He led the group. When he was close enough to the aircraft, he reached into his pocket and pressed a button on his clicker. The aircraft's rear hatch unlocked and lowered, the door forming a ramp leading to inside. He turned and wildly waved his arms. "Hurry up!"

[Savage]

Delbert could only stand back and watch with large, fearful eyes as Duck Avenger started going off about zombies. He didn't know what to think. However, Dreamchild stepped forth and began to explain the situation, backed up by her mysterious new companion. It would seem that the unfortunate lady had been a prisoner in a laboratory, and was trying to find somewhere to go.

Delbert's eyes met those of Dreamchild's (whose were actually rather difficult for him to read, given the fact that all he could see was white), then the pleading eyes of the undead woman's, then finally shifted off to the side. His floppy ears drooped a little lower, and his narrow shoulders sagged. Guilt-ridden and embarrassed, he couldn't look her in the eye after how he had behaved. He knew perfectly well what it was like to be treated like a circus sideshow and a ticking time-bomb. Pursued like a dangerous animal. No one should be prejudged and treated in such an unfair manner!

When the Avenger apologized, Delbert managed to meet the woman's eyes. "Yes, I apologize as well. I overreacted." He really hoped that they hadn't hurt her feelings. He always did have a bad habit of loosing control of his words.

A look of passionate determination suddenly took over his features, and he exchanged a glance with his much shorter partner. "Nobody likes being a guinea pig in a science lab, right?" Duck Avenger had asked.

"As someone who has had first-hand experience with that situation, certainly not!" Delbert agreed. Turning back to the woman, he presented her with a sincere smile of friendliness and reassurance. "Don't worry madame! The Dream League is at your service!"

He waited for the girls to follow Duck Avenger before he himself began to move, wanting to act as the rearguard in case the people who were after their new friend decided to make an appearance. Unfortunately, he accidentally bumped into a trashcan while looking over his shoulder, but managed to catch it in time before it completely toppled over. However, the lid fell to the pavement, the resulting crash resounding loudly throughout the alleyway.

[Dreamchild]

Dreamchild sighed and brought her right palm to her face, covering her visage. Even though she had similarly reacted with fright when she first met Sally, the psychic was nevertheless embarrassed by her partners' reactions. Thankfully, both men soon apologized for their behavior, and expressed their willingness to help. Her hand lowered, Dreamchild gently took Sally by the hand and smiled up to her. Sally really was a tall woman, even taller than Sunshine.

"I'm here with you. Let's hurry!" Duck Avenger was ahead. Dreamchild would walk alongside Sally, and Dr. Delbert followed behind.

[ragdoll]

Ragdoll cowered away as the duck began to unleash a torrent of abuse upon her, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks. She didn’t blame him for having this view of her, after all this was the reaction that she expected most people to have at her, however this did not make it any less painful when it was thrown into her face like this. Much to her surprise however, the duck’s attitude softened up only moments later, and he apologised for his initial reaction, followed a moment later by his canine companion. A wave of relief and gratitude washed through her, as once again the faint possibility of one day being fully accepted appeared before her in the distance.

“You- you don’t need to apologise,” said Ragdoll softly, not quite meeting the eyes of either the dog or the duck as she looked from one to the other, “I doubt you’ll be the only ones to think like that.” She noticeably perked up however as the good Doctor mentioned having also been used as a guinea pig in some kind of malicious science experiment, and found herself looking at him in a much warmer light than she had even moments before. Could it really be that she had common ground with one of the other members of this mysterious organization that was helping her? She hadn’t even imagined that something like that was possible (not that she’d actually had much time to devote to imagining what they were like).

“You were experimented on too?” asked Sally as she accompanied the group down the street, instinctively matching pace with Savage as she did so to make conversation between them easier, “what did they do to you, was it as awful as this?” She rapidly clamped her hands over her mouth to silence herself, suddenly realising that this was probably not his favourite thing to talk about. Unfortunately she clamped her mouth shut rather too quickly and with a little too much force, for as she lowered her arms again her hands remained in place clinging to her face. It was only when a passer-by, who had recognised the various members of the Dream League and stopped in the hopes of getting his photo taken with them, screamed that she became aware of what she had done. Blushing (or at least as close an approximation as her mortality-challenged body could manage), she rapidly fixed her hands back into place, however the damage had already been done.

“What is she!? Asked the boy wildly, “Is she a zombie? Did you capture her!? Are more coming!? IS EPCOT CITY ABOUT TO BE ATTACKED BY A ZOMBIE PLAGUE!?”

[Duck Avenger]

Duck Avenger watched the other Dreamers. There was no time for a conversation, guys! He was about to say that aloud, but then Delbert bumped into trash can. Despite his effort, the lid fell and made a noise. Smooth, Doc. Soon, Sally had accidentally severed her hands, which were attached to her face. Duck Avenger's muscles tightened and he clenched his teeth, grimacing. Man, was that creepy...

Too bad a little brat spotted them. This was the last thing the Dream League needed: they were wandering through a very dry hayfield, and this little boy was the lit match. This couldn't end well.

Duck Avenger sprinted to the kid and attempted to pull him away from Sally. His voice was annoyed but restrained; he didn't want to be too loud. "That's right, she's a zombie. But she's a special kind'a zombie. She's a zombie that infects you if you tell anyone else about her. Keep it a secret and you'll be safe! Can you do that for humanity, kid?"

It was a stretch, but it was better than punching the kid in the face, knocking him out cold. That would've been hard to explain to Chief O'Hara. And the kid's parents. And the lawyers--yeah, it was better this way.

[Savage]

“I doubt you’ll be the only ones to think like that.”

The woman's melancholy words caused Delbert to guiltily cringe. He knew that was likely true, but that didn't mean that the way he and Duck Avenger had reacted to her presence was right.

After knocking the trashcan over, he hastily apologized at least six times and replaced the metal lid. Oh dear, he hoped no one had heard that. He didn't want to draw any unwanted attention their way.

He wanted to do everything in his power to make things easier for.. for... Delbert suddenly realized he didn't know the woman's name. Just as he was about to ask, he was caught off-guard when she asked him if he was experimented on too, and exactly what had been done to him. It was a subject he was comfortable discussing even now, even with his teammates. But maybe talking about it would help both him and her.

"Y-yes. It was sometime after... my powers first manifested." He quietly explained. "I was..." Going into detail about what had been done to him was difficult, and pausing, he bit his lower lip, Caught up in the unpleasant memories, he didn't really notice when Sally's hands accidentally detached and clung to her face.

Delbert's dreary flashbacks were broken when a little boy suddenly showed up and started to loudly hurl silly question at the Dreamers. The dog's surprised expression rapidly melted into one of sheer annoyance as he stared at the boy. Where had this little hooligan come from? Was he attracted by the racket created when he had bumped into the trashcan earlier? He wasn't mad enough to transform, but if this brat didn't go away, that might change.

Duck Avenger came to the rescue, telling the child that he would need to keep what he saw here today a secret or risk being turned into a zombie. "Yes, exactly! It's a matter of the utmost secrecy!" Delbert added. He wondered if the Waterfowl Warrior's ploy would work or not.