Loonatics Unleashed: The new Loonatics

Going Underground

Chinatown in downtown Acmetropolis was always vibrant. Strings of paper lanterns were hung up above the streets. Traditional music could be heard all over. The dragon dance, performed at traditional celebrations to drive away evil spirit and usher in good luck and blessings for the community at large, was performed for all those present. 

Three of these spectators, dressed in their own traditional attire, emerged from one of the many shops that lined the streets of Chinatown carrying cartons of delicious food.

"Okay. We got the food. Can we go back to HQ now?" Duck pleaded.

"Chill, Duck. It's not a trip downtown without getting a little takeout," Lexi rebuked him.

"Plus, this parade is awesome! No harm in watching for a few minutes." Sam added.

"Frankly, I'm a little uncomfortable in a place where duck in orange sauce is a dinner entrée," Duck shuddered. He then warned both women, "If anyone starts drooling, I'm quacking out of here!"

"Whoa! Here comes your girlfriend!" Lexi joked, making Sam giggle.

When he saw another dragon walk by, complete with the man performing a juggling act following behind it, Duck rolled his eyes and drawled, "Ha-ha. Very funny."

Lexi just couldn't resist taking that dig at Duck. It was only fair, considering how obnoxious he could be. Then, Lexi started hearing a strange noise, "Do you hear something?"

"How can I hear anything with this racket?!" Duck snapped impatiently. "You'd have to have super hearing to..." Duck trailed off at the knowing looks Sam and Lexi were giving him. "Oh. Right."

"Come on. Let's check it out," Lexi ordered.

"Excuse me! You're not the boss of me, missy!" Duck scoffed. "Ace is technically the boss, but since he isn't here, don't just assume that you get to be in charge! If anybody's gonna lead, it's gonna be me!"

As Duck walked away from the group, everyone suddenly lost their footing. An earthquake seized the district, causing the buildings to tremble and the roofs to almost vibrate off the building. Lexi and Sam were barely able to stand upright. 

But as quickly as the seismic activity appeared, it disappeared. It was almost as though nothing had happened.

Well, almost.

"Anybody order duck with orange sauce?" Duck grumbled.

Lexi and Sam gaped at the mallard as he stalked over covered in spilled sauce from the cartons he had lost. Sam couldn't help the giggles that escaped her lips at his misfortune.

But they could not relax for long, because the seismic activity started up again, this time a lot more intense. The road split in two, divided by a massive fissure that appeared out of nowhere. Several buildings that withstood the previous earthquake were now in sudden danger of collapsing due to the volatile force.

Duck stumbled around blindly, losing his balance from the tremors as he was also blinded by one of the food cartons that had spilled on him. He muttered apologies to people he was bumping into. He was thinking that things could not get any worse.

But then, a food worker lost control of a food cart containing various foods and Duck collided with it, being covered with even more sauce.

When the tremors stopped, Lexi and Sam made their way over to the grumpy mallard.

"Boy are you saucy!" Lexi remarked.

Tasting the sauce that was dripping off him, Duck couldn't help but quip, "You know, I am pretty tasty."