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Louie awoke with an unpleasant start, to say the least. He had been knocked unconscious plenty of times—but sheesh, this one really hurt. His head was reeling and the room spun with unfamiliarity. He only vaguely registered he was still in the cave he and his family had been exploring earlier that morning.
The last thing he remembered was being knocked out by these crazy tribe warriors. But where was the rest of his family? They were right next to him. Weren’t they?
The answers met his gaze, their eyes panicked.
“Wha..the..” He choked, the scene before him made him want to throw up.
Huey. Dewey. Both of his brothers were gagged and bound uncomfortably with rope, their faces contorted in fear and pain at the tight bindings. A warrior at each of their sides, forcing them to kneel.
With uncharacteristically, no plan; Louie let out a shocked gasp, ignoring the fuzziness in his head as he shot up and attempted to rush to their aid.
Unfortunately, he didn’t make it very far before he was pulled back by his hood. Hard. He thumped back to the stoney floor. That’s gonna bruise.
He spun around angrily, before shrinking back at a sharp spear being pressed against his neck. One of the warriors.
“I see you're finally awake.” A disembodied voice sounded across the cavern, shaking the cave and causing a few pebbles to chip off from the ceiling.
Louie gulped.
“You will be a part of our traditions. You already entered the sacred chamber. It’s impossible to escape.” The voice became clearer as, who Louie assumed was the leader or god, or whatever—appeared menacingly at the head of the hollow.
“We already told you! We didn’t know the treasure here was protected by an ancient tribe! We’ll leave! Just let us go.” Della’s voice suddenly chimed in somewhere behind him, and he was thankful to come to the conclusion that he wasn’t alone. He didn’t have to save his brothers on his own after all.
“Silence!” The leader’s voice was like a bolt of lightning, and an aerie hush fell over the cave. Louie whipped around, avoiding the sharp blade still being threatened against his neck.
He let out another gasp as he realized that anyone who might have been able to help him, was already at the mercy of the warriors. Scrooge, Della and Webby were already bound by similar ropes to his brothers but now ragged pieces of cloth were being tied around their mouths.
“No more interruptions.”
Louie turned back around slowly. This can’t be happening.
“Please, just let us go.” He ventured, his voice trembling.
The warrior ignored him. “For many years our tribe has made a sacrifice every moon for the gods, it is an honor.”
“This isn’t an honor, it’s kidnapping and we won’t be your sacrifices!” Webby managed to spit out before being silenced again by a gag.
The leader’s eyes narrowed, the flaming torches glinting off his obsidian mask. He stepped closer to Louie, the spear now pointed at his chest. “Your refusal to embrace our traditions shows a lack of respect. The gods demand it. You shall pay the price for your insolence!”
Panic spiked through Louie’s veins. He had to think of something, fast. His mind raced, trying to come up with a plan, a bargain, anything that could save his family from this terrifying fate. The leader bent down, his breath hot and foul against Louie’s cheek.
“Choose.” He spat, an evil smile at his lips.
“What..?”
The leader’s words took a moment to sink in.
Choose? Choose what?
“Choose one of your brothers to save. The other will be offered to the lava pit, to appease the volcano gods!” The leader’s grin grew wider, his eyes gleaming with sadistic pleasure.
He nodded to one of the stationed guards, who responded by pulling a lever with a dramatic creak. The earth beneath them trembled as a previously unseen section of the floor began to give way, revealing a fiery abyss that roared with molten lava. The heat washed over the room, bringing with it the acrid scent of burning rock and the overwhelming sense of doom.
Huey and Dewey's eyes grew wide with horror, and even through their gags, their muffled cries echoed through the chamber. Scrooge and Della struggled against their binds, desperation etched into their faces. Webby's eyes welled with tears, her gaze flicking between her family in despair.
"You..can't..mm!" Della screamed, though her words were muffled.
The leader's grin grew even more twisted. "Choose," he repeated, his voice like a death sentence.
Louie's heart hammered in his chest as he stared at his brothers, their wide eyes pleading with him. This wasn't a decision he could make. They were all he had, his family. He had to find a way out of this.
He always had a plan. A scheme. Something. Anything.
But not this time.
"I can't choose!" Louie exclaimed, his voice cracking under the pressure. "Please. We didn't mean to disrespect your traditions! We’ll give you money, gold, anything you can dream of! Please just don’t do this.”
But the leader’s expression remained cold, his eyes as unyielding as the volcanic rock that surrounded them.
“Please just take me instead then.” The words came out as a sad whisper. Louie wasn’t the sacrificial type, but what else could he do?
His brothers screamed wildly at that, twisting and yanking at their restraints to no avail.
“I’m growing impatient.” He growled. Clearly not phased by the heroic statement.
Huey and Dewey continued to fight desperately against their attackers, their eyes wide with fear and desperation.
Louie's heart felt like it was being torn in two. It might as well have been. He couldn't decide, couldn't bear the thought of choosing one over the other. The leader's smile grew colder, his patience clearly wearing thin.
He searched both of his brother’s eyes.
Huey's eyes met Louie's, and in them, he saw the reflection of his own terror but also something else. Something Louie didn’t want to see.
His older brother stopped struggling.
Although he couldn’t speak through his gag, his piercing gaze and furrowed brow spoke volumes.
Dewey. Save Dewey.
He clenched his fist as Huey went back to his struggling, and begrudgingly, Louie looked at his wildest sibling.
Dewey. The daredevil. The one who’d probably find a way out of this mess on his own if he had the chance. The one who’d never back down from a challenge, no matter the odds.
Was crying, his whimpering muffled by his gag.
When he finally met Louie’s gaze, the younger found himself choking back a sob.
There was no determination, no authority.
Just a weak plea.
Please save Huey.
“I’m tired of this, the eyes of the gods will grow tired from waiting!” The leader yelled.
Louie seemed to jolt awake at that. From terror and a crazy idea.
Eyes of the gods… The Eye of Demogorgana! He conned the amulet off of Goldie a few months ago, if he had any chance of saving his brother’s, then it was now.
“Wait! I know who I want to pick. Okay?” Louie felt the words roll of his tongue, a confidence that was not there before startling his brothers.
“Can I just… hug the one I choose..goodbye? Please.”
Please work. Please work. He didn’t have another plan if this failed.
The leader paused, then nodded, his grin twisted into something that resembled a sick amusement.
Louie stuffed his hands into his pockets as he walked towards his brothers. He fumbled awkwardly for the desired item, trying his best not to give away his frustrations.
Not it. Not it. This is a bad time to have 20 cans of pep stuffed in here.
His hand brushed something cold but firm, and he felt for the round eye at the top as he stopped a few paces away from both of his brothers.
The Eye of Demogorgana was secured inside of his sweaty and shaky palm. The wearer, would become impervious to burns.
The choice was obvious, Huey wasn’t a good liar. The best chance they had was Dewey’s dramatic flare saving them.
He turned towards the middle brother.
He was still crying, his shoulders slumped weakly even with his hands behind his back.
He looked so tiny and weak. A shell of himself. Could he really trust Dewey to sell this?
He couldn’t see another choice.
He took a shaky and weak step towards Dewey.
Huey erupted into a fiery fit of rage. Thrashing about in his restraints as his muffled cries of protests echoed throughout the cave.
Dewey, however, though his sniffles and teary eyes, gave a nod so subtle it was almost imperceptible.
Louie hoped this entire situation would be funny later. Hopefully.
He approached Dewey, the tremble in his legs growing stronger with each step. He had to ignore the fiery pit behind him, the molten heat lapping at his back, whispering of the fiery embrace that awaited.
He had to ignore the desperate gurgles from his other brother and he didn’t dare meet his gaze.
Instead he desperately looked at Dewey, trying to convey that ‘everything would be alright’.
But Dewey didn’t seem to understand, and Louie wanted to scream and cry. He didn’t want his brother to think he was choosing Huey over him. Not even if it was for just a few minutes.
But he had to be strong. For both of them. For all of them.
Once he reached Dewey, Louie leaned down, acting as if he was about to whisper sweet nothings into his ear. Instead, he slipped the Eye of Demogorgana into Dewey's trembling and bounded hands.
He closed his brothers fingers around the necklace and clenched hard. As to say, “don’t let go”.
He only whispered one thing. “Is being a god, flashy enough for you, Dew?” He voice so low, that he almost thought he might have just imagined the words instead of saying them.
But Dewey’s trembling stopped, frozen in shock.
When he stepped back, Huey’s fighting had grown to sobs of anguish and despair.
He was happy to see that when he met Dewey’s gaze, there was a spark of understanding.
“Very well then,” The head warrior said ominously.
The guard holding Dewey, tightened his grip, but didn’t immediately pull him away.
This was it.
The moment of truth.
The leader stepped forward, his grin wide and victorious. He reached out a hand to pat Louie on the shoulder, his eyes gleaming with triumph.
"Your love for your brother is commendable," he sneered, "but it changes nothing. Toss em.”
With a heavy heart, Louie knew he had to sell it. He had to make this work.
He stepped back from Dewey, feigning defeat, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. He turned to Huey and with all the sorrow he could muster, whispered his sorrows into his brother’s ear. Huey's sobs grew louder, his eyes searching Louie’s, a pleading, why? Why? Why? In his gaze.
But Louie couldn’t answer, not now. Instead he took a deep breath, bracing himself for the act of his life.
The guard pushed Dewey to volcano’s edge, and simply tossed him in. No hesitation or anything.
The room erupted into chaos of chanting and crying as his brothers body was swallowed by the molten liquid.
Dewey Screamed, loudly and dramatically. Louie stifled a disbelieving laugh. Careful to hide it from the warriors and family.
Not that dramatic Dewey. He facepalmed.
But the screaming stopped.
A beat of silence fell over the room, and the chanting ceased.
Only the whimpered crying of his family filled the air.
The warriors watched in awe as the fiery pit remained silent.
Then after a few horrific heartbeats, Louie let out a sigh of relief as a outstretched hand gripped the edge of the volcano.
Dewey emerged from the fiery pit, his clothes untouched by the flames, his feathered skin unblemished by the heat.
The warriors and the rest of the family stared in utter disbelief.
Dewey looked down at the amulet around his neck before awkwardly stuffing it into his shirt.
“Stand down my disciples.” Dewey’s voice rang around the cavern.
“I rise from the ashes!”
The guards released their grips, dropping the ropes that held Huey and the rest of the family as they took a step back, a mix of awe and fear etched on their faces.
“Tis me, your awesome god, taking the form, of whom I must say is a very attractive duck, to test your loyalty.”
He heard Huey’s disbelieving and relieved laughter, muffled by his gag.
“What sorcery is this?” The leader stuttered, his spear dropping slightly.
“Not sorcery, but a divine intervention!” Dewey exclaimed dramatically, playing the role of a deity. “Your sacrifice has been accepted and your gods are appeased!”
“I demand you let these fine ducks go, and cease these sacrifices at once!”
The leader’s eyes darted between the unharmed Dewey and the fiery pit of lava.
He nodded, kneeling before his “god”.
“Thank you, oh mighty god for your mercy!” He cried.
The warriors didn’t move for a moment, still frozen in shock.
“What are you fools doing! Release these ducks at once!” He yelled.
The warriors looked at each other nervously before moving to obey the leader. They scurried to untie the ropes that bound Scrooge, Della, and Webby, their faces still a mess with tears, but amused and relieved.
As the ropes fell away, Huey looked up at Louie with a mix of astonishment and confusion. His voice was hoarse from his muffled screams, but his eyes shouted a hundred questions.
“Now, I will see this nice family out of the cave. I expect a lavish feast here when I return.” Dewey yelled, trying to make his voice deeper as he walked over to both of his brothers and grabbed their wrist.
The leader nodded, his fear and awe palpable.
“Let’s get out of here!l” Dewey whispered, and Huey looked as if he might faint with relief.
The rest of the family joined them on their way out, as the tribe warriors parted like a sea before the chosen deity.
Once they were outside the cave, the oppressive heat of the volcano dissipated, replaced by the cool evening air. The full moon cast eerie shadows on the jungle floor as they hurried away from the terrifying scene they had just escaped. The relief was palpable, their breaths coming in gasps and sobs as they stumbled into the plane.
Della was the first to break the silence, her voice shaking. "What...what just happened?"
Scrooge rubbed his sore wrists, his eyes never leaving Dewey, who had the audacity to strut back to the plane with the confidence of someone who hadn't just been thrown into a volcano. "You tell me, Dewey. How did you pull that one off?"
Dewey looked back at them, a smug smirk on his face. "Oh, you know, just the usual divine intervention." He tapped the amulet hidden under his shirt. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, by the way, Louie."
But Louie didn’t answer. He just fell to his knees, a sobbing mess.
The tension had been too much, and now that it was over, he couldn’t hold it in anymore.
“I thought— I thought..that I was going to have to kill one of you.” He sobbed, throwing himself into his brothers arms.
Huey and Dewey clung onto him tightly.
Huey was murmuring apologies and Dewey was stroking his hair softly.
"It’s okay, it’s okay. It's over now." Huey said, his voice shaky.
Louie melted into their embrace and didn’t complain when the Scrooge, Della and Webby joined.
They stood there for a moment, all of them holding onto each other tightly. It was over. They were safe.
Louie never wanted to do that again.