Chapter Thirteen
By: Winston deLeon
The rest of trip was swift and uneventful, and it wasn't long before Jade was pulling up in front of the AP station nearest the Ranger's treehouse, one of four small AP stations scattered around the city. This particular one was built inside the walls of an old office building whose human owners had left it mostly vacant for some time. After both vehicles were parked out of the way behind some bushes to keep them out of sight, Chip entered the station, returning a moment later followed by a number of AP officers, who he led to Jade's vehicle. She removed the cloth covering the cage, and as she did, the officers stared in amazement at the prisoners within.
"You Rangers are something else." One of the officers said to them, smiling gratefully. "We've desparately wanted this guy in custody for a very long time."
"Don't thank us." Chip shook his head. "Thank our new acquantance here." He motioned to Jade, who was standing off to the side.
"She helped in apprehending them?" The officer asked.
"Helped?" Tammy said with mock indignance. "She pulled off the whole thing single handedly!" She stated matter-of-factly. The officers stared at Jade, looking considerably impressed, which made her shy back and blush slightly.
"Well, then, we'd certainly better get your name." The officer said, pulling out a notepad and a pen.
"Jade." She said.
"And your last name?" The officer requested.
She sank silently into thought for a long moment before answering. "You know..." She finally answered uncertainly, "I don't really think I have one anymore."
"Huh? How does that happen?" Tammy asked curiously.
"It's a long story that I'm not going to get into right now." Jade answered, shaking her head. "Just put it down as Anonymous or Unknown or whatever. I don't really care."
"Anyone have the keys for this cage?" One of the officers asked, preparing to remove Capone and move him to a jail cell.
"Oh, I can open it." Jade said, pulling a short snippet of wire out of her pocket and approaching the cage's door.
"Golly, it's not so simple a lock that that's all there is to the key, is it?" Gadget said incredulously, looking at the unassuming piece of bare copper Jade was holding.
"No, it's a fairly complex lock, but this is all I need. I destroyed the real keys. I don't need 'em, and I didn't want to take even the smallest chance that Rat might get his hands on them somehow." Jade explained, kneeling down in front of the door. She closed her eyes as a look of concentration came over her face. Gently but rapidly her fingers manipulated the piece of wire as she worked by touch and hearing.
Twenty seconds later, with a distinctive clicking sound, the lock popped open. "All yours." Jade said as she stepped back from the cage door. Immediately, three officers moved forward. One opened the door, and the other two seized Rat Capone and dragged him to his feet. As soon as they led him out of the cage, other groups of officers similarly handled Mousenegger and Sugar Ray Lizard. While being led into the building, Capone suddenly cringed and grimaced, hissing with pain. "I... hate... spunk." He finally gasped out, glancing back briefly at Tammy, obviously still suffering from the hard punch she had inflicted on him last night. As he did, she could see in his eyes that he was shaken that someone so innocuous-seeming could have hurt him so badly in a single blow.
"When Jade said ya socked him good, she musta meant it. I think maybe ya hit him a bit too hard there, luv." Monty said, sounding impressed.
"Oops." She said simply, crossing her arms and smirking.
After the prisoners were led away, the Rangers spent the next few minutes answering questions and filling out paperwork. The routine was just about second-nature for the Rangers, and they finished fairly quickly. It was fortunate for Jade that nothing was mentioned about the Devil's Eye diamond's connection to Capone, and she was mostly silent, trying not to draw much attention to her role in everything that had happened.
After the group returned from the police station, they stood around outside
talking, taking advantage of the morning sun now that the cloudcover had mostly
drifted away in the night. After a short time, Tammy informed them that she
would be heading home now that all the business with Capone was over.
"Leavin' so soon, luv?" Monty asked. "You haven't been here more than an hour or so."
"Yeah, but I never went home last night, either. My mom's probably freaking out, so I'd better get home and tell her where I was. Besides, after a night like last night, I need to get some more sleep. I'll see you guys tomorrow or something." Tammy waved and turned to leave.
"Do you need a ride home?" Jade asked her.
"No need, it's a short walk." Tammy said. "Well... See ya, I guess." She yawned and started on her way.
With the departure of the person she knew best, Jade looked somewhat uncomfortable for a minute, until Gadget stepped forward. "Now that everything important is out of the way, you wanna have a look at the rangerwing?" She asked.
"Oh... sure." Jade said, looking glad that Gadget had made the suggestion.
"Okay, just follow me." Gadget said. The two of them walked through the treehouse to the entrance door to the hangar where the vehicles were kept.
"You said your aircraft was based on the rangerwing, didn't you?" Gadget asked as they entered the room and she opened the large door to the outside to admit the daylight.
"Yes, it was. I've seen you flying around the city in it a few times, and I managed to get some nice photos. From there, it was pretty easy to work out the measurements on most of it, and where I needed to change something, I just consulted a book on aerodynamics to make sure that it would still fly if I modified it a certain way." Jade explained. "I hope you're not too mad that I stole your design, but I really needed something workable, and I didn't have the time to do it from scratch by myself..."
"I'm not really mad. I mean, I do wish that one of my designs hadn't been used to steal something, but I guess in a way it is sort of flattering that you chose one of my inventions. So, how long did your plane take to build?" Gadget asked.
"Nearly a month." Jade answered.
"That's it?" Gadget exclaimed incredulously. "How did you ever do that in a month? Design alone took me nearly three weeks on the rangerwing, not to mention construction..."
"Well, keep in mind that I let you do a lot of the work, after all, so that cut a lot of time out." Jade reminded her. "I'm pretty fast when it comes to just throwing things together, and besides, I had a lot of motivation to finish on time - I had to have it ready in time to coincide with the Devil's Eye diamond being in town, and I only learned about that a month before the fact, so as you can imagine, it was sort of a mad scramble to put all the elements of my plan together."
"But you did it, and that's pretty impressive for that kind of timeframe." Gadget noted.
"Only just barely. I only got in two test flights in my aircraft before the big day came." Jade said. "Of course, since it was a throwaway aircraft, I wasn't particularly concerned with the quality, as long as I could get it to fly the one time it really had to."
"Where did you get all the parts from?" Gadget asked. "We checked all around the city, but it doesn't seem like you bought a single thing that you would have needed to construct a version of the rangerwing anywhere."
"All junk." Jade answered simply. "Like I said, quality didn't matter, so I went around to various dumps and got everything I needed from them. It took me a long time to hunt down some of what I needed, but I didn't really have much choice, since I couldn't have paid for good parts anyway. I gave away the last of Capone's money a while back, thinking I wouldn't ever need it..."
"Capone's money?" Gadget asked, puzzled. "What were you doing with Capone's money?"
"Well, some of Capone's money, I mean." Jade explained. "When I escaped from Capone, I didn't leave empty-handed. On my way out, I stole as much gold as I possibly could. I don't really know why. I guess I figured that since my machines had been what enabled him to acquire most of it, then it really sorta belonged to me. That, and I knew that losing his gold would hurt Capone more than anything else I could have immediately inflicted on him. Maybe there were other reasons, or maybe I just wasn't thinking clearly. It was a very emotional time. The point is that I took it."
"What did you do with it?" Gadget asked.
"Funny thing about gold... It's heavy, it takes up space, you have to hide it to keep it safe from cutthroat thieves, you can't eat it, and you can't make anything particularly interesting out of it very easily. I had a lot of it, but it wasn't doing me any good, so I started just giving it away." Jade said.
"You mean, to charities and things like that?" Gadget asked.
"Charities? No, I gave it directly to other people, hoping that maybe they'd learn a lesson." Jade answered.
"What lesson is that supposed to teach someone?" Gadget asked, briefly thinking it through but still not understanding what Jade was getting at.
"The lesson that money isn't what's important. The lesson that people are where they are because of themselves, not because they do or don't happen to have some cash. Just having money doesn't change anything at all. Things don't make you what you are, it's you and the choices you make that makes you who you are. If I can get someone to understand that, then maybe I can help stop them from falling under the same sickness that Rat Capone was devoured by." Jade fell silent for a minute, lost in thought. "Anyway, getting back the rangerwing, how did you build all the control systems?" She asked, returning to the subject they had orginally been discussing. "They gave me no end of trouble in my version."
"Oh, here, I'll show you." Gadget said enthusiastically, detaching an access panel from the front of the plane. "You see that hub there in the middle? It's attached to the two control sticks in front of the cockpit seats with those steel cables, and it redirects the force exerted by them into these rods, which run to the various control surfaces. Now, of course, in order to make the hover mode shifter lift the engines into a vertical position, I had to figure out some way of rotating two heavy objects very quickly..." Gadget blissfully continued speaking for over ten minutes, explaining every technical detail about how she had constructed the various mechanical and electrical control systems of the rangerwing, wandering up and down the length of the aircraft and at times removing and then replacing various body panels to reveal the exact design of a certain system and illustrate how it's theory had been put into practice. Usually, the less mechanically inclined tended to rather abruptly cut her off when she was explaining something like this, always just as she started getting to an exciting part, so she was pleased that Jade followed her explanations with real interest rather than boredom.
At last, Gadget's long-winded explanation was over. "Wow, this thing is amazing." Jade said in admiration. "I did everything so different, nothing like what you've done with this. I'll bet this one flies way smoother than mine ever did."
"Why, what was yours like to fly?" Gadget asked curiously.
"In one word: rough. Aviation mechanics don't seem to be my strong suit. On top of being thrown together as fast as I could do it, the steering mechanisms were never really calibrated or fine-tuned right, because I had no time left to do that, and you wouldn't believe how badly it would shake sometimes in the air. There were times when I was afraid the wings were going to rip clean off, and I always had to struggle with the stick to make the thing execute even a simple turn."
"Sounds downright scary to have to fly something like that." Gadget commented.
"Oh, it was... I always thought it would be so fun to fly my own airplane, but in something like that, I'm actually glad I only had to do it a couple times." Jade said. She hesitated for a moment, looking as if she wanted to say something but was a bit afraid to. She finally spoke just before Gadget was about to ask what was on her mind. "Um... Do you suppose... it might be possible sometime for me to see how it would have stacked up against the rangerwing here? You know, just a quick circle around your tree or something, sometime when it's not any trouble..." Jade asked apprehensively.
The request pleasantly surprised Gadget. Usually no one else was particularly excited about flying in the rangerwing when they had to, much less asked for a flight demonstration. It felt rather good to have the attention of a fellow machinist for once, as few people really understood the things she built most of the time. "Golly, it's not a problem at all!" Gadget exclaimed. "Just take the front seat on the right over there, and we can take off right now if you want." Gadget was already clambering into the left hand side front seat of the rangerwing as she spoke.
"Really?" Jade's face brightened as she climbed into the right hand seat. "Wow, thanks!"
Gadget started the engines, hovering the 'wing upwards as she pulled it out of the hangar. After doing so, she climbed swiftly, reaching the level of the top of the tree rapidly.
"Okay, just use the control stick in front of you, and try out a few loops around the tree." Gadget said.
"I'll give it a shot." Jade took the controls tentatively at first, making gentle turns, but soon became more confident, turning more sharply and doing tight circles around the tree until the rangerwing was almost within the reach of it's outermost limbs, then she flew the 'wing low to the ground, and did three extremely tight loops around the trunk of the tree before returning to their original altitude.
"I love how smoothly this thing steers." Jade said excitedly as the rangerwing straightened out and leveled off.
"Take it out over that building, and you can try out the hover mode." Gadget replied, pointing to a nearby store.
"Got it." Jade replied, banking the rangerwing softly as she steered towards the building in question. A minute later, they were flying slowly over it's roof, about twenty feet above the flat expanse of grey tiles.
"The hover mode switch is this lever over here." Gadget said, indicating the proper control.
"I put on the airbrake first to stop our forward momentum, then put it into hover, right?" Jade asked.
"No need, when you put it into hover, it deploys the airbrake automatically at the same time." Gadget answered.
"Oh, that's a good idea." Jade commented as she switched the rangerwing into hover mode, then started slowly descending to the roof. After a few moments, the rangerwing touched down gently, idled briefly, and then lifted off again. "Nice smooth landings, I see." Jade observed.
After taking off once more, they swiftly flew back to the tree, landing the rangerwing once again in the hangar, and after doing so, Gadget and Jade went to Gadget's workshop to compare ideas and continued their discussion on the differences between their respective aircraft. Aviation was Gadget's favorite area of expertise, and she felt like she could discuss it nearly forever, but eventually the conversation lulled and they left the workshop and rejoined the others in the livingroom of the treehouse.
Jade stuck around to chat with the Rangers for a few more minutes. They talked about what it was like to fly the rangerwing, various uncovered details of how she had executed her plan, and a few other subjects. After ten minutes or so, however, Jade announced that she had to be leaving. "You know, projects to finish, and I need to scavange up some things, I'm completely out of food at home. I'm afraid I can't really hang out here too much longer." She explained, in answer to their protests that it was still early in the day and that she should stick around a while. She did, however, give them the address of the building that she lived in so that they could find her later if they needed to, and explained that she could usually be found in the skylight.
Finally, the time to depart came. Everyone headed ouside for a moment to see Jade off.
"Remember, if you need anything, drop by our headquarters anytime." Chip said as Jade got into her vehicle and prepared to leave.
"I hope we see you again soon." Gadget added, interested by the prospect of having someone else who was mechanically inclined to bounce ideas off of and already having several potential collaberation projects in mind.
"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks!" Jade replied as she switched on the vehicle's motor.
After a final chorus of goodbyes, the Rangers all waved, then started heading back inside.
As Monty was heading back inside, last in the group, he looked back briefly,
and saw that Jade was sitting in the driver's seat of her vehicle, staring out
ahead of her at nothing in particular, as if she was deep in thought about something.
A split second before Monty was about to turn back around and walk inside, to
his surprise, a single tear suddenly rolled silently down Jade's cheek. Without
a sound, she crossed her arms over the steering wheel of her car, leaned her
head forward to rest on her arms, and broke down crying.
Monterey Jack was thoroughly confused and rather worried. Slowly, he took a few tentative steps back toward Jade, who didn't seem to be aware that anyone else was still around. He came closer, and still she didn't notice him. "Uhh... Is there somethin' wrong, luv?" He asked with concern. The wording of the question made him feel like an idiot - of course there was something wrong - but it was the first thing he could think to say.
Lifting up her head, she turned and looked at Monty in surprise. "I just... it's nothing. I'll be fine."
"You're sure?" Monty asked.
"It's just been a strange day." Jade answered, sniffing back tears. "It feels so surreal, like a dream, and it's just really hitting me now that everything I planned for this entire month... No, more like for the entire time since I escaped from Capone... It all really happened. Capone's really gone for good. I'll never have to see him again. I don't have to worry about him catching me again, or about being beaten, or being hungry for days at a time, or being locked into a slimy, cold half-flooded stone holding cell down in some sewer until he needs me to build some machine so that he can break into a jewelery store someplace. I'm... I'm really free now. For the first time, I really fought for myself, and for what I believe, and I won. It's just such a strange feeling to suddenly be so vindicated when you've been nothing but a slave and a loser for so long."
"Ya should be proud of how you did it, too." Monty said, patting her on the back. "The way you pulled everything off... I've gotta say, it was right brilliant."
"You mean you're not even just a little bit mad about what I did with the Devil's Eye?" Jade asked.
"Well, at first, it seemed like a terrible waste, to just smash up a diamond like that." Monty said. "But once you explained it, I think I understood what you were getting at. To tell the truth, it actually helped me and one of me pals put an argument behind us. We were in a terrible fight over some pretty silly stuff that we both thought was valuable, but when I saw that diamond get smashed, and you said that bit about nothing lasting forever, it kinda put things in perspective, like. Ya made us see that there's way more important things. So, I guess I really oughta say thanks."
"No... Now that I hear that, I would like to thank you, Monty." Jade said.
"What for?" Monty asked.
"For confirming to me that at least one person out there got the message I was trying to send with what I did." Jade answered him. "I hope a lot of people come to understand, but even if it's only one, then it was still worth it in the end. If it prevents one more person from thinking like Rat Capone, then it was completely worth it, without a doubt."
"Thinkin' like Rat? Whaddya mean?" Monty asked.
"Greed, that's what I mean." Jade answered him. "People like Rat Capone act the way they do because they get caught in this illusion that material things are what's important. They want them for their own sake, not because they're really good for anything. They grab up all they can, but it's never enough. The more they have, the more they want, the more blind they get. My hope was to shock people into realizing what they're doing by doing something that would get a huge amount of attention. I know it's wrong to steal and destroy, and I know it seems like I'm being a hypocrite by doing what I did, but I spent years watching the way greed decays people. It leads them to steal and destroy anyway, so I figured fight fire with fire."
"I'd say it worked like a charm. So, how does it feel to strike a hard blow for justice, anyway?" Monty asked.
"Pretty good." Jade said, smiling. "It really does feel like I've done something important."
"Well, in that case... Maybe we could use your help in cases in the future, if you'd like to keep at it." Monty ventured. "O' course, you'd have to do things socially acceptably, like. No smashin' gemstones or anything like that..." He said half-kiddingly.
"I think the vigilanteism is out of my system from now on." Jade assured him. "And if you ever really need my help, I'd be glad to lend a hand."
"Good ta know. And if ya ever need anything from us, like everyone said, drop by anytime." Monty said.
"Thanks. I've never had..." She stopped abruptly. "It feels so strange." She finished softly, looking a touch puzzled.
"What does?" Monty asked curiously.
"I was just gonna say, I've never had friends before that I could really just drop in on, and it occurred to me how weird it is that I end up making friends with your group. It just seems so unlikely when I look back on it right now, especially after what I did to them." She answered.
"Well, luv, sometimes the best friends are people you'd never think you could be friends with." Monty said.
"And sometimes the people you think are your best friends are your worst enemies." Jade added.
"Too right." Monty agreed. "I've found that one out the hard way myself a couple 'o times." He fell silent and sank into thought for a moment.
"Well, anyway, I really had better get moving now." Jade said, breaking the silence and slowly starting her vehicle into motion. "I'll see you again sometime soon." She called back towards Monty as she picked up speed.
"Right. See ya!" Monty called after her and waved as she accelerated down the sidewalk. He stood watching until she disappeared around a corner, then turned and went back into the treehouse, confident and rather pleased that the Rangers had made an interesting new friend.
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Disclaimer:
The charactors of Chip, Dale, Gadget, Monterey Jack, Zipper, Tammy, Foxglove
and any other charactor originally appearing the animated series "Chip
and Dale's Rescue Rangers" are all © Disney and are used here without
permission. Any other charactors appearing herein that are not © Disney
are my own creations. This story may be freely copied, transmitted, printed,
distributed, used as bird cage liner, or whatever, I only ask that it is not
modified from it's original form and it is not used for profit in any way. I
believe that that concludes the legal mumbo-jumbo for now... On to the story!
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