The Disappearing Dinner
It was taco night aboard the Black Dragon’s Foot, and everyone was ready to eat.
McDonalds the inflatable crocodile was stacking his plate high, Penny and Laragh were mixing salsa, and Alfie was adding way too much hot sauce.
But when Skull Fire turned around to grab the drinks… the tacos were gone.
Completely. Vanished.
Cluckles sat on the table, feathers ruffled, eyes darting side to side.
“Don’t look at me,” he clucked suspiciously, his beak covered in crumbs.
Before anyone could say anything, an alarm blared.
“INTRUDER DETECTED IN THE TRAINING BAY.”
The crew ran down the hall—only to find the door wide open and a faint trail of feathers leading inside.
The Secret Dojo
Inside, glowing lanterns flickered. A group of shadowy figures in black robes leapt and twirled, striking poses in perfect silence. They were the Space Ninja Clan, training in a hidden dojo built into the ship’s lower deck.
And in the middle of them…
stood Cluckles, wearing a tiny ninja mask, performing perfect karate chops.
“Cluckles!” Alfie shouted. “What are you doing?!”
The head ninja turned. “He has passed our trials. He is… the chosen one.”
Cluckles bowed, feathers gleaming under the lantern light. “They said I’m the best ninja they’ve ever trained!”
The crew gawked.
Skull Fire groaned. “We’re doomed.”
The Ninja Challenge
The head ninja stepped forward. “To prove his mastery, your chicken must defeat the best of us in the Trial of Shadows.”
Before Alfie could object, Cluckles clucked proudly and leapt onto the challenge mat.
“Bring it on, shadow-beak!”
The first ninja lunged. Cluckles ducked, spun, and used his roundhouse wing kick—POW! The ninja flew backward into the wall.
The second tried to sneak behind him, but Cluckles performed a heel pick self-defence move, flipping the ninja flat onto his back.
“Impressive,” said the head ninja. “But can you handle… me?”
He drew two glowing katanas.
Alfie gasped. “Cluckles, wait!”
But Cluckles had already leapt into the air, feathers blazing with cosmic lightning.
The Final Showdown
The dojo shook as the battle began—kicks, chops, and wing-blocks flying faster than light.
Alfie watched in awe. “He’s using everything I taught him!”
Finally, the head ninja lunged with both blades.
Cluckles crossed his wings and shouted, “CLUCK-KI-YAH!”
A burst of energy blasted through the dojo, knocking every ninja flat. When the smoke cleared, Cluckles stood in the center, victorious.
The head ninja bowed deeply. “You have shown true mastery, warrior of feathers. Take this—The Golden Egg of Honor.”
Cluckles accepted the shining egg proudly… and then accidentally dropped it.
It cracked open, revealing—
“Hey!” McDonalds gasped. “That’s my missing taco filling!”
Everyone burst out laughing. Even the ninjas chuckled (quietly, of course).
Back on Deck
Later that night, Cluckles strutted through the ship wearing a new black belt tied around his middle.
Alfie grinned. “Nice job, Sensei Cluckles.”
The chicken nodded sagely. “Thank you, student. Now… who wants tacos?”
Everyone groaned, but couldn’t stop smiling.
THE END
(of Story 2 — Next up: Eoin’s Laser Tag Gone Wrong!)