Gears

Chapter 38

New Life

Evina left his estate, but he had trouble getting back to Toontown Central. Thousands of toons had packed into the park. Some of them were even sitting on the roofs of nearby buildings. They were shouting chants, and some of them were even dressed like goofy cogs.
Gyro's spaceship was now parked on the roof of Town Hall. A stage was set up in front of the building. The heroes were already seated up on the stage while a news crew began to set up their cameras. The only thing missing was Evina.
He pushed through the crowds to reach the stage and take his seat. The emotions he felt were mixed. He wasn't sure if he wanted to take this credit, even though for the longest time he would have liked to be famous.
When everything was ready, Flippy walked up to the microphone. "Is this thing on?" he asked. His voice blasted out of the speakers, silencing everyone else. The volume was turned down, then he continued to speak. "Welcome everyone," he said unenthusiastically, "we are here to commemorate the achievements of these amazing toons. While we were ignorantly sitting here, these brave souls fought to save our lives. We will first start with a few words from my grandfather, a very important member of the Toon Council, Goofy."
There was light applause as Goofy clumsily walked up to the microphone. "Gawrsh, I never knew we were in so much danger," he said. "I want to be one of the first toons to congratulate Harry and his friends for their great accomplishment. Toontown is greatly in debt to you."
The crowds cheered as the heroes lined up to receive their awards. Mickey carried a bunch of huge medals over to them and started at Zany.
"To Zany, for her determination and extreme enthusiasm during this crisis..." He put the medal around her neck.
Zany smiled down at the crowds, absorbing the applause.
Mickey continued. "And to Pink for providing moral support to others during their hardest moments..."
"Thank you," she smiled timidly.
"To Catman, for helping the toons avoid detection from the enemies with his robotic arm... that he no longer has."
"Thanks, Mickey," he said with pride, "but I was really just doing my duty."
"To Rocky, for um... what did you do?"
"I helped find edible food," Rocky said.
"Oh, alright then," Mickey said, giving the dog his medal. "To Ricky, for his very powerful explosives..."
"The very sight of me just blasted them away... literally!" Ricky chuckled, even though nobody else thought it was funny.
"To Simeon, for overcoming his fears and becoming a very valuable part of the team..."
Simeon smiled nervously at the crowds then took a step back.
"To Goopy, for leaving his TV career to help the team with their technical problems..."
Goopy said nothing and gestured for Mickey to move on. He winked, and the crowds went wild.
"And to Evina Gearloose for never giving up, even in the hardest of times. We thank you for your bravery and perseverance."
Evina smiled, and the people cheered. But he didn't know if he really deserved that golden medal hanging from his neck. After all, he sort of caused some of the trouble in the first place.
"To Scrooge McDuck, for courageously surviving alone in Cog Nation for fifteen years and providing valuable information to the toons. Nothing the cogs could do changed him from what he really is, a toon."
Scrooge bowed, and the crowds cheered louder than ever.
Mickey stood in front of the last toon. "To Harry Oldman, for his valiant leadership and bravery, I present you this medal. Although at times we may have doubted you, you did an incredible job. Thank you for ensuring the safety of everyone. You are the reason we are all alive."
Harry smiled. "I tried my best."
Mickey stood back and faced the audience. "I present to you the heroes of Toontown!"
Confetti and jellybeans rained down from the sky as the crowds cheered, and the music played. No more would they have to worry about the cogs. They had learned to rise up above their selfishness and get along with each other. Evina saw Clerk Clara run up onto the stage and hug Harry tightly. Lil' Oldman also strolled up to him casually. He was muttering something about how his father had finally learned 'the way of the pie.'
Evina knew the chairman was right. The toons did become famous. But that's not what made Evina happy. He was simply glad that everyone else was happy. He didn't want anyone to regret going with him. He didn't want anyone to blame him for taking them to Cog Nation and putting them through so much stress. He didn't want anyone blaming his father for what he had done either.
Mickey had one last medal, the largest of all, and he gave it to Gyro. The crowds below looked confused and whispered in each other's ears. None of them recognized him.
"I really don't think I deserve this," Gyro said as the microphone was placed in front of him. "For those of you who don't know me, I am Gyro Gearloose and... I created the cogs and ordered them to invade you."
It took the crowds a while to comprehend what had been said. They didn't know if it was a joke or if he was serious.
"Yes, it's true. I did it out of anger, but I did it to help you. And I'm afraid that if I didn't, we might have destroyed ourselves by now. Still, I've learned a lot since that day, and I don't think I would make the same mistake again."
The crowds became quiet. Almost all of them looked stunned or confused.
Gyro continued. "After years of observation, I noticed that sometimes opposition can be used to make things stronger. I am not sure why this is, but I know it is true. What I did was still the wrong thing, and I apologize for all the chaos I've brought to Toontown, but my heart was in the right place. I was just trying to do what I thought was best for everyone. Please find it in your heart to forgive me."
The old chicken stepped back from the microphone and Mickey walked back up. Flippy had mysteriously disappeared, and the crowds were shocked by Gyro's words. They were trying to think about his words and if what he said was true. But luckily, nobody got really angry or sad, they just smiled. It almost seemed like they were grateful for the things that he had done.
Evina couldn't believe it. How could they be happy about the cogs? Gyro had almost destroyed Toontown, and they were actually grateful for it! It was something he didn't quite understand. Maybe, he thought, it must've been a toon thing. He was no longer a toon, so he didn't know how they could forgive him. How could someone overlook fifteen years of misery and still feel happiness? Evina wondered. Have the toons already felt the positive effects of Gyro's crazy scheme?
He certainly didn't want Gyro to suffer, but he believed that if he were still a toon, he wouldn't be able to forgive someone like that. If someone had come up to him and told him that he had caused all the pain in his life for the past fifteen years, he would explode in anger. It took him a long time to actually understand what had happened. He assumed that the toons didn't care about what Gyro had done. They were just happy for the friendships they had made during the journey.
"I'm glad that everyone is safe and sound," Mickey said. "I almost thought there would be no happy ending for us."
Then Evina suddenly had a flashback. His mind floated away to the white room. "You forgot something," the chairman's voice echoed. "And that something or some things are some people."
Evina whooshed back into his body. "No!"
"What?" Mickey asked worriedly.
"Not everyone has a happy ending! Not everyone is here!" he exclaimed. "There are still those that want to live here happily, and I have to fix that now."
Evina walked over to a blank part of the stage and removed the pencil from his pocket. He couldn't believe he was actually doing this. The crowds watched with anticipation as he drew a happy looking duck on the ground. And when he was satisfied with his work, he looked up into the sky and said, "Jared Sparx!"
Everyone on the stage gazed at the duck sketch on the ground. It turned brown then stood up on its feet.
The new toon looked at the other toons in the park, then he looked at the toons on the stage, and then he looked at himself. He seemed to be struggling to say something. The emotion he was experiencing was like nothing he had ever felt before. "What the..." he exclaimed. "I'm a toon!"
Evina walked up to him and shook his hand. "Hello there, I am Evina Gearloose, and I want to be the first one to welcome you to Toontown, Mr. V.P."
"You mean... Cog Nation is gone?" he asked worriedly.
"I destroyed the president, but I thought you said you would rather be a toon. If you decided to change your mind, we could always dip you—"
"NO! I WILL LIVE! I WILL BE HAPPY! I'M A TOON!" he shouted. The crowds cheered, and the former vice president of Cogs Inc. ran down to them, eager to make some new friends.
Evina didn't stop. He drew a horse this time and announced, "Mike Grease!"
The horse became blue, and the C.F.O. stood up. He reacted similarly to the V.P.
"How are you doing, Mike?" the V.P. asked him.
"Is that you, Jared? We're toons?"
The celebration continued as Evina sketched up a rabbit. "George Sprocket!" he shouted.
The rabbit turned red, and the Chief Justice arose. He tried to block his eyes from the sunlight. "For crying out loud, I'm blinded!"
"This is how things look without your blindfold, George," the C.F.O. laughed.
The rabbit continued to wobble around, trying to adjust to the brightness of Toontown Central.
This time, Harry took the pencil from Evina and drew a dog on the ground. "Don't mind if I do," he smiled. "Robert Gears!"
The dog filled with a light green color, about the same shade as Harry. "Where am I?" he asked.
"You're in Toontown, Bob," the V.P. shouted.
"But what about my father?" he asked frantically.
"He said he didn't want to be a toon," Evina admitted, "but he wanted you to be whatever you chose to be."
The C.E.O. looked around the park and at his friends. He smiled and walked over to them. "I think I could get used to this happy toon stuff!"
The four new toons led a parade out of the park, ready to start their new life. Evina watched them walk away, and he thought of how wonderful it would be to have a fresh start. For the first time since changing, he shed a tear of happiness. Now he could move on with his new life. Now he was finally complete.
"Well, I think my work here is done," Catman announced. A mask and cape appeared out of nowhere. He jumped up and flew away into the sky. Evina couldn't believe that he had told the truth.
Gyro came over to Evina as the crowds finished their celebrations and began to leave. "If you think about it, I am technically their father. I made their master. I gave them their lifelike attributes."
"So, that makes me their... brother?"
"Yeah, well, something like that," he smiled. "I'm so glad this finally has a happy ending, but I'm not sure if it always will be that way."
"What do you mean?" Evina asked.
"It involves my trip to Earth. I'll talk to you about it later. But what are you going to do now?"
"I really need to get some rest," he yawned. "I think I'll get a home in Duckburg and sleep for a very long time."
"That is probably what everyone else is going to do," Gyro said. "And for the record, I'm now lifting the block that I've put on your memory. I can't shield you from emotional pain anymore."
Gyro touched Evina's forehead, and the duck's mind was opened. He remembered his life fifteen years ago. He remembered Gyro leaving him in Toontown Central. He remembered the anguish of living alone for such a long time. He remembered Mickey Mouse leaving and many more events. Sadly, he still didn't remember far enough back to see his mother. That would be something to learn later. "If only I knew these things before," he whispered.
He looked around for his dad, but Gyro had quietly disappeared just like almost all of the other toons. The pencil had also vanished.
Someone had already cut through the hedges of the park, revealing a blocked tunnel called Wacky Way, leading to another street and then a highway. It made sense why Goofy Speedway was built right next to it. Evina smiled and went to get his kart. He was going on a drive.

Flippy stormed out of Toon Hall. He whispered in one of his guard's ears. "Don't let any more wild fans come in, ok?"
The guard nodded, and all of the Toon Council members turned their attention to Flippy, staring at him in a peculiar way.
"Why are you so upset, Flippy?" Mickey asked him.
Flippy paused. "Well, I uh—"
"Are ya feelin' sick?" Goofy interrupted.
"Well, I uh—"
"I know!" Mickey exclaimed cheerfully. "You're still mad at me for coming back and demoting you to vice president again!"
"Well, I uh—"
"Oh dear, the poor man is speechless!" Scrooge cried.
"Well, I uh—"
"Are you feeling blue?" Goofy chuckled. "Get it? You're blue!"
"WILL YOU LET ME TALK NOW?" Flippy barked. Everyone on the stage nodded anxiously. "The reason I'm upset is that—"
"Hi, Flippy, do you mind if I tell you something?" Gyro cut him off. Nobody had noticed him standing there before. Flippy glowered down at him disdainfully. "I never got the chance to properly meet you yet since I returned," Gyro continued. "Am I the reason you're angry?"
"Well yes, it's just that... YOU GAVE ME FIFTEEN YEARS OF HARD WORK AND GRIEF! I DON'T KNOW IF I'LL BE ABLE TO LAUGH ABOUT ANYTHING EVER AGAIN!"
"I really am sorry about that," Gyro apologized. "I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me. So, I've also decided to give you this." He pulled out a perfectly decorated, freshly baked birthday cake.
Flippy's expression lightened. "It's been such a long time since I've had a fresh slice of cake," he chuckled. "I guess the cogs did bring Toontown closer together. Ok, I forgive you."
The Toon Council smiled to see old friends reuniting again. Then suddenly Gyro rotated his arm and splattered the cake in Flippy's face with tremendous force. Everything and everybody went absolutely silent. Flippy stood there completely still with his mouth wide open. His face was concealed behind all the thick cream that was slowly sliding down.
The dog raised a single finger, and everyone expected him to go berserk, but instead, he dabbed it in the cream. He lifted it to his lips and licked it. He grinned and started laughing hysterically.
Mickey laughed too and elbowed Goofy. "You can't beat the classics," he chortled.
Flippy approached Gyro while wiping the rest of the cream off his face. "That was... that was really funny," he admitted, "and quite unexpected."
Gyro laughed and shook Flippy's hand. "Welcome to Toontown!"

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