Faceoff (An Impossible Quartet 4)
David J. Duncan
October 2007
Notes: Kim Possible and her cohorts belong to Disney. All other characters are mine. Please send comments to dante0220 .
Chapter 1 [Mid-November—two months after "Balance"]
[Hisotara Wing, Tokyo National Gallery]
Late on that night a week and a half before Thanksgiving, the neon lights in Japan's capital lit up the quarter-filled streets. Despite most people being home in bed, the illumination gave the illusion of activity.
In one place that should have been empty, the Tokyo National Gallery, fifteen uninvited late night prowlers roamed the Hisotara Wing; their eyes scanning the artifacts and exhibits for one item in particular that their leader wanted.
Monkey Fist glared at the rubbish that his more-human counterparts valued with contempt. Since the experimental surgery performed by DNAmy five years earlier, his obsession lay in acquiring items surrounding monkey power. Somewhere in the museum, he knew one such thing, the Matsui Marakawa, a three foot silver statuette with jade eyes, waited for him to possess it. The thought of its power increasing his own made him grin.
One of his monkey ninjas rushed back and squeaked at him.
"Really? Excellent, Salvatore!" He grinned at the news. Soon the idol would be his.
[Two wings away]
Unbeknownst to Monkey Fist or his cadre, Kim Possible alighted softly on the floor and scanned the shadowy chamber to make sure they were clear. Feeling satisfied, she waved to the skylight and her three companions waiting above.
"Anything?" Rick asked as he stepped away from the rope he'd used to slide down.
"Nothing," she indicated as they steadied the rope so that Yori could make her way down it.
"Ron San, come on," the Japanese ninja advised.
"Yeah. Like I'm going to do this," Ron responded from the window.
"Ron! Just slide down it already!" Kim hissed.
"Geez! I'm comin' already!" the blonde sidekick retorted while sliding down it. However, he went too fast, burning his hands in the process. "Ow! Hey!" Six feet above the ground, he let go, landing on his rear end. "Ow! Ow! Ow!"
"Ron San, are you all right?" his girlfriend asked with concern.
"He's tough, Yori. Don't worry," Kim reassured her. "Come on, Tough Guy, on your feet."
"Easy for you to say," Ron groused while climbing to his feet and still waving his hands to cool the rope burns on his palms. "Next time, we all use gloves." He took Rufus out of his pocket. "You okay, Buddy?"
Rufus shook his head to get the cobwebs out of there. He scurried around the room, putting his nose to work without further bidding from his human or the others. He curled his snout at the offensive yet familiar odor coming from the hall ahead of them. "Monkey!"
"Monkey? Oh man!" Ron winced as he rushed after his friend. As he reached the juncture between the museum's four wings, he saw the security guard lying unconscious on the carpet; the latter's hands bound securely behind his back. "KP! Yori! Come here!"
"Great. As if we needed this?" Rick assessed grimly. "Kim, is he?"
She scanned him with her wrist Kimmunicator and got a reading. "He'll be okay. We'll come back for him after we deal with our thief." Seeing Rufus waving a tuft of black hair in the air, she asked, "Awesome! Is that what I think it is?"
"Uh huh! Uh huh! Monkey!" the mole rat exclaimed.
"With the Matsui Marakawa on display, that can only mean Monkey Fist," Yori realized.
"Just what we need," Ron sighed, really not wanting to deal with their frequent arch foe at that point.
"We can do this, Ron San. Trust in that," Yori advised.
"What's his deal?" Rick wondered.
"Ron's had monkey issues since we were kids. Camp Wannaweep," Kim explained.
"That again?" the former handler sighed.
"Yes, that again," Ron insisted. "Monkeys are SICK AND WRONG!"
"Only this one is," Yori insisted. "Face your fear, Ron San. You have bested him before. You can do so again."
While he wanted to practice his 'screams of courage' at that point, Ron knew he'd never live it down from his partners or from the class at Yamanuchi if he chickened out. He forced his fears down. "Fine. Let's kick some monkey tail."
"Cool. The statuette is this way," Rick agreed while leading the group in that direction. Five minutes later, they ran into Monkey Fist and his ninjas eyeing their prize.
"Visiting hours are over," Kim advised tersely.
Monkey Fist rolled his eyes, recognizing the voice almost instantly. "Oh look! It's the cheer squad. I say—tired of the drama already, have we?"
"It hasn't started yet, Fiske," Rick interjected while stepping ahead of Kim.
"Oh really?" The mutant quirked an eyebrow in amusement. "Miss Possible, have you decided to break in a new partner over the bumbler?"
"Hey!" Ron protested indignantly. "I'm still on this team!"
"Pity for you, Human." Monkey Fist pointed to them. "Monkey ninjas, ATTACK!"
The pint-sized simians swarmed toward the teenaged quartet and the latter's rodent companion.
"Back to back in a circle, guys," Rick advised as they assumed that position.
The skirmish lasted for several minutes with each side gaining and losing the advantage. Still, the teens held their own, forcing the ninjas back toward their master.
"Give up now?" Kim offered.
"Hardly!" Monkey Fist chortled while producing a circular object and throwing it to the floor. In the smoke that erupted, he grabbed the statuette and climbed the wall to the ceiling. "It has been fun but next time, I will deal with you!" He whistled, calling the monkeys to his side before heading into the night.
It took several minutes for the teens' eyes to clear from the onion component in the smoke. When they could see again, they found their adversaries gone along with the Matsui Marakawa.
"Blast!" Rick spat in disgust. "How could we have fallen for that?"
"We anticipated a straight hand to hand duel, Rick. Monkey Fist has rarely used such tactics," Yori insisted.
Ron rolled his eyes, preparing for the lecture he knew would be coming from Sensei over the misadventure. Always expect the unexpected.
"Let's free the guard and let GJ know," Kim declared while leading the others back toward the bound guard. "Meantime, we'll need to keep an eye out for Monkey Fist."
And they had no idea that they would be running into their enemy again sooner than they thought.