Switched
Part 1
At a research facility out in the remote countryside, a team of scientists were going about their routines when all of a sudden, a loud blast rocked the facility, and they were all confronted by Destro, The Baroness and Cobra Commander. "By the orders of Cobra, surrender your research and your equipment!" The Baroness ordered.
"Vipers! Round up the scientists! We can use them as bargaining chips!" Destro added.
"What is going on here?" Dr. Lasseter, the head of the team asked.
"Isn't it obvious doctor?" Cobra Commander told, "We're taking you and your team hostage! This facility and everything in it now belongs to Cobra!"
"You can't do this! I won't allow it!"
"I'm afraid that you don't have a choice in the matter!" Cobra Commander snapped his fingers, and the teams of Vipers holding Dr. Lasseter's team hostage held their guns to the scientists' heads, as Destro walked over to a large alcove.
"Is this the machine you're looking for?"
"Yes! Perfect! With this machine Destro, we can use it to give people abilities that we can use to conquer GI Joe, then the world!" Cobra Commander laughed with fiendish glee. "I want this machine, and all the research related to its design and function!" He demanded.
"Never! I will not let anything here fall into evil hands!" Dr. Lasseter yelled.
"Then you and your team will perish!" The Cobra forces armed their weapons they had trained on the researchers, but were interrupted by another loud blast.
"YO JOE!", came the battle cry that Cobra Commander knew all too well.
"It's the Joes! Get them!" Destro ordered as he, Cobra Commander and the rest of their forces went to meet them. Outside were Flint and several other members of the GI Joe team.
"Alright fang-face! Whatever you're after, we're not going to let you have it!" Flint barked.
"HA! Just try and stop me!" Cobra Commander taunted back.
"Have it your way!" Flint replied as the GI Joes engaged the Cobra forces. Several Joes charged into the fracas, including Salvo, Heavy-Duty, Ambush, Pathfinder and Beachhead.
During the firefight outside, Dr. Lasseter was busy ushering his team to safety, with Lifeline offering his assistance. Lift-Ticket was waiting for them in the Tomahawk.
"C'mon doctor, you're the last one." Lifeline said.
Outside, while the fighting was going on, Cobra Commander snuck away while everyone else was distracted. Except for Pathfinder, who saw that he was going back into the building.
"Flint! Cobra Commander is trying to sneak back into the building! I'm going after him!"
"Alright. Ambush, go with Pathfinder and find out what that reptile is up to."
"Right. YO JOE!" Ambush replied as he followed Pathfinder into the research facility.
"I have to make sure that Cobra doesn't get to my research. I have to stay." Dr. Lasseter told Lifeline.
"A foolish choice, doctor." Cobra Commander snarled, his gun pointed at the both of them.
"Not so fast snake-breath!" Pathfinder shouted as they exchanged gunfire.
"No! The equipment!" Dr. Lasseter shouted, running towards the lab.
"Dr. Lasseter, stop!" Lifeline called after him. Now Lifeline was faced with a difficult choice. Leave with Lift-Ticket, or stay without having to fire his sidearm.
"Unless you're gonna join the fight, we gotta move!" Lift-Ticket shouted from the cockpit.
"Get those people to safety, Lift-Ticket. I gotta make sure no one else gets hurt." Lifeline replied. Inside, Pathfinder had taken refuge behind a console, along with Ambush, periodically emerging only to fire their rifles, with Cobra Commander firing back at them.
"Looks like we got ourselves a stalemate here buddy." Ambush remarked.
"Patience Ambush. I'll think of something." Pathfinder replied. Then, when Cobra Commander had his back turned, Pathfinder jumped out from behind his hiding spot and tackled him to the floor. The building continued to shudder as the battle outside got closer.
"You fucking scumbag!" Ambush yelled as he saw Pathfinder get struck in the face, and fired his weapon, the bullet hitting the wall slightly above them.
"You think you can stop me jungle rat?" Cobra Commander growled, struggling under Pathfinder's grasp.
"I can try!" Pathfinder snarled through gritted teeth. The two of them rolled on the floor, punching and kicking each other, with Ambush waiting for the moment to fire his rifle at Cobra Commander without hitting Pathfinder. A blast from the weapons fire outside flew in and hit the control panel on the machine that Cobra was after, just as Cobra Commander and Pathfinder rolled onto the platform hooked up to it. They both screamed as they were enveloped by a bright blast of light from the alcove above. That was when the Joe team burst in.
"Pathfinder!" Ambush shouted, but Flint held him back. Finally, the machine shut itself off, with Pathfinder and Cobra Commander collapsing to the floor.
"What have you done to him?" Destro yelled at Flint when the Cobra forces entered the lab.
"Hey we're not the ones who fired on that thing, metal-face!" Ambush screamed.
"Ambush, at ease." Flint told him.
"If you hurt my buddy, you'll pay dearly!"
"Ha! As if I should care! Perhaps it is you who should suffer for hurting Cobra Commander!" Destro retorted.
"Fucking son of a bitch..."Ambush tried to lunge at Destro, but Flint kept a firm grip on him.
"I said at ease!"
"How should I know you didn't fire on the equipment? You could've done it on purpose." Destro continued to taunt them.
"Destro shut up or this time I will let Ambush have a go at you!" Flint growled as Destro helped Cobra Commander to his feet. His eyes fluttered open for a minute, and looking around, he had this peculiar feeling, because inside, he was not Cobra Commander. Am I dead? Pathfinder thought as his eyes fell on his body lying a couple feet away. What Flint and everyone else didn't realize was that when the machine overloaded, it caused Pathfinder and Cobra Commander to switch bodies
"Make no mistake GI Joe, this is not over! Not by a long shot!" Destro snarled. "Come, Cobra Commander." He assisted Cobra Commander as they left the facility, with The Baroness keeping her gun trained on them. With the Cobra forces in retreat, Flint, Ambush and the rest of the GI Joe team were left to survey the damage. Ambush knelt down by Pathfinder as Lifeline was checking on him.
"How is he Lifeline?"
"Well, he's breathing, and his pulse is stable. But I'll know more once we get him back to headquarters." Lifeline replied.
"Dr. Lasseter, what was it you and your team were doing research on that would be of interest to Cobra?" Flint asked as the rest of Dr. Lasseter's assistants joined him when Lift-Ticket returned with them.
"My team and I specialize in finding out what it is that gives certain people, unusual abilities."
"What kind of abilities?" Beachhead asked.
"Telepathy, psycho-kinesis, pre-cognition, those kind of abilities. Very little research has been done regarding those rare individuals who possess these gifts, so, I hope to change all that. I want to see if maybe there's a specific part of the brain that is developed in those who have these gifts, and if that's so, why them and not others?" Dr. Lasseter explained.
"And this contraption that Cobra was after, what's it supposed to do?" Ambush pointed at the machine which had zapped Pathfinder and Cobra Commander.
"This was supposed to facilitate direct thought transfer. In layman's terms, it would allow you to read another person's mind. Basically, it allows you to telepathically communicate with another person, and while hooked up to it, we would monitor which section of the brain is used, and whether or not it's a section of the brain that's normally dormant."
"Doctor, how would this help people?" Flint asked.
"Think about it. If you wanted to determine if someone was telling you the truth, normally one would have to use a polygraph, which can be inaccurate. This, is much more. It will make it easier in determining if someone is telling the truth or lying."
"What about those who have the ability to move objects with their minds? Can this machine monitor how they can do that?" Lifeline asked.
"Well, you have to understand, this is just a prototype," Dr. Lasseter said, "but yes, when re-calibrated, it can be used that way."
"This all sounds fascinating. But why would Cobra be interested in it?" Beachhead asked.
"Well, I suppose by having people who can move things with a simple thought, Cobra could find a way to turn them into a new kind of fighting force." Flint replied.
"Can we get back to headquarters? I don't want anything to happen to Pathfinder." Ambush told them, getting impatient.
"Yeah, we better head back. Dr. Lasseter, I hope that you and your colleagues can get all your equipment repaired so you can continue your research." Flint shook his hand.
"I'm just glad GI Joe showed up when they did.
Back at headquarters, Pathfinder awoke and found himself in a recovery room in sick-bay. But inside, he was not Pathfinder. GI Joe Headquarters? What am I doing here? Cobra Commander thought, have I been taken prisoner? Then he saw his reflection in a mirror nearby, and discovered he was in Pathfinder's body. Hmm, it would appear that when Dr. Lasseter's mind-reading machine overloaded, it caused me to switch bodies with jungle rat here. A smile formed across his face. An evil smile. Perhaps I can use this situation to my advantage. But I must also find a way to get back to our base. If Destro should find out what's happened, he could try to use it as the perfect excuse to take over, the treacherous bastard!
Pathfinder was equally confused when he found himself at Cobra's base. Have I been captured? After finding a mirror, he was shocked to find that the face staring back at him was not his, but Cobra Commander's. What the hell did that machine do to me? Pathfinder was about to scream when Destro walked in, interrupting his thoughts.
"Your hood, Cobra Commander." Destro handed him a blue cloth with two eyeholes cut into it.
"Uh, oh. Ah, yes, thank you Destro." At least my voice is still the same, Pathfinder thought as he put on the hood.
"We should give you a medical exam. You were hit by a massive beam of unknown energy." The Baroness added.
"Uh, what? No! Do not concern yourselves with such a trivial matter! I am perfectly fine! Now, I must be left alone! I will let you know of my next scheme to defeat the Joes when I am damn well ready! Do I make myself clear?"
"Very well."
"Yes Commander." Destro and The Baroness turned and walked away.
"Perhaps he was not affected by the blast after all." Destro remarked with his usual sarcasm.
"That may be. But something about him seemed a bit, off." The Baroness said.
"How so, my dear?"
"Did you not notice that he seemed to have a slight accent to his voice?"
"What type of accent?" Destro asked.
"I cannot describe it, but I know I heard one."
"Maybe it's a slight side effect from that machine. It'll probably wear off." But in the back of his mind, even Destro wasn't so sure. Whew! Pathfinder thought, they bought it. I guess when we got hit by that beam, I ended up switching bodies with ole fang-face. I just hope I can get back to Joe Headquarters before Cobra Commander can try to do anything while in my body.
Still in sick-bay, Cobra Commander was already working on a plot he could try while stuck inside Pathfinder's body. "Hey Pathfinder, good to see you up and about." Stretcher commented when he found him awake and alert as he came in to check on him.
"Yes, and unless you have any more tests to run on me, I'd really like to get out of here and back to my duties."
"Well, since your vitals are all normal, I don't see any reason why you can't." Stretcher replied. "But, if you feel any vertigo, nausea, or anything else unusual, I want you to report back here, alright?"
"Of course." Pathfinder replied. Stretcher wasn't too sure why Pathfinder was so quick to leave, but then again, most of the Joes hated wasting time hanging around sick-bay when they had jobs to do. There was also something else that seemed off about Pathfinder, but Stretcher couldn't put his finger on it. When I take over Joe Headquarters, you're on my list! Cobra Commander thought. As Pathfinder was leaving the room, that was when Ambush bumped into him.
"Watch it you klutz!" He snapped. Ambush was taken aback a bit.
"Whoa, sorry buddy. I just came to see how you were doing, that's all."
"Well as you can see, I'm doing perfectly fine. I'm a big boy you know, Ambush. I can take care of myself." But the sarcasm in Pathfinder's voice told Ambush otherwise. Normally, Pathfinder would be touched by Ambush's concern for him. This time, he seemed to resent it, and it disturbed him. Plus, Ambush also noticed that Pathfinder seemed to have no accent. Being from Florida, Pathfinder spoke with a slight southern lilt. This time, it had all but disappeared. Ambush couldn't put his finger on it, but Pathfinder appeared different to him somehow.
Pathfinder rolled his eyes when Ambush came over to join him at the table he was sitting at in the mess hall for lunch that day. "Don't you have some place to be?" He asked as Ambush sat down.
"Uh, no. We usually eat together, remember?"
"Oh, of course! How could I forget?" You're next on the list too!
"Pathfinder, are you sure you're okay?"
"I'm fine." Pathfinder growled, slowly starting to lose patience. I must find out where the Joes keep their secret files! Cobra Commander thought, but I can't do anything if this meddling moron insists on playing bodyguard! He is driving me mad! "Ambush-" Pathfinder was about to tell Ambush off, when they were interrupted by a dog growling at them. Law and his dog, Order, had come into the mess hall to grab a bite to eat, and when Order saw Pathfinder, that was when he started growling at him.
"What's up with Order?" Ambush asked.
"I don't know. Order, calm down." Law said to his companion. But Order wouldn't listen. He continued to growl at Pathfinder, then without warning, tried to lunge at him. It took nearly all of Law's strength to hold onto his leash. "Order! Stop!" Law shouted. Several people watched as Order almost broke free of Law's restraint on him, preparing to jump on Pathfinder, wanting to rip him to shreds.
"What the hell is wrong with that dog?" Pathfinder shouted.
"Order! Heel!" Law commanded. But still, Order kept barking. "I'm so sorry Pathfinder, Ambush. I have no idea what's gotten into him. Order! Bad dog!" Law scolded.
"You keep that flea-bitten mongrel away from me!" Pathfinder sneered.
"What did you call my dog?" Law asked, indignant. He did not like anyone insulting his friend, and his hands balled into fists.
"Uh, nothing Law." Ambush said, getting in between them. "Pathfinder's just having an off day, that's all."
"No it's not! Will everyone just leave me alone?" Pathfinder yelled and stormed off. The whole mess hall was in silent shock at what just occurred. Not just at Order wanting to attack Pathfinder for seemingly no apparent reason, but also with his resentment towards Ambush, who they all knew was his best friend. Sure they occasionally butted heads in much the same way Leatherneck and Wetsuit did, but they usually made up afterwards. They were like brothers. Law and Ambush were especially stunned at Pathfinder's sudden change in demeanor. But Order, still growling at Pathfinder as he left, knew that the person inside, was not him.
After finally figuring out where the Enlisted Men's barracks were located, Cobra Commander, still occupying Pathfinder's body, found room which Pathfinder was assigned to and went inside. Now, where would he keep his gun? Cobra Commander thought, looking around the room. Aha, there's that jungle rat's locker. He dug around inside it, filled mostly with clothes, hoping to find a weapon of some type. Here it is. It was Pathfinder's side-arm. And unlike most of the weapons, this gun had bullets. Now, to search for where information is kept so I can use it to finally defeat GI Joe once and for all!
Later that day, Beachhead was posted on sentry duty outside of the computer and file room where Mainframe was working when Pathfinder showed up. "Hey wait a minute Pathfinder," Beachhead told him when he tapped the panel that would allow him access into the room, "don't you remember? You don't have the proper clearance to enter."
"Oh, right. I guess I did forget. How silly of me." Pathfinder replied with his usual sarcasm. He turned to leave, then without warning, turned back around to face Beachhead, pulling out his gun.
"What the-" BANG! Beachhead slumped out of his chair onto the floor. Pathfinder stood over him with a malevolent grin.
"Now I have the proper clearance." He tapped a couple buttons on the panel and after a few seconds the door slid open.
"Pathfinder, what are you-" BANG! Pathfinder shot Mainframe, and he crumpled to the floor, bleeding from a shot to the left side of his chest. Mainframe was still conscious, trying to crawl towards the computer terminal which Pathfinder sat down at, but passed out as Pathfinder started searching the computer files.
Meanwhile, Ambush went to see Psyche-Out. As a highly trained psychologist, Ambush figured he'd be the best person to help him find out what was wrong with Pathfinder. Seeing that his office door was open, Ambush went in. Psyche-Out didn't hear him enter the room as he was at his desk, going through his appointment schedule. Just as he took a sip of coffee, Ambush tapped him on the shoulder, causing Psyche-Out to spit coffee all over himself, and the desk. "Crap! Ambush, would you mind not sneaking up on me like that?"
"Sorry." Ambush replied sheepishly.
"And I thought Snake-Eyes was bad enough at sneaking up on people." Psyche-Out wiped off shirt. "Anyway, you're not scheduled for another two weeks. What can I help you with?"
"Psyche-Out, Pathfinder is not himself." Ambush said.
"What do you mean, 'not himself'?" Psyche-Out raised an eyebrow.
"Well, we were on this mission, trying to stop Cobra from taking this mind-reading contraption when it overloaded, zapping both Pathfinder and Cobra Commander."
"Wait, hold on. Mind-reading contraption?" Now Psyche-Out was confused.
"I'm not kidding you. These scientists somehow built this machine which could allow two people to read other's thoughts, communicate, uh, telepathically. Of course, they said it was only a prototype."
"And now you believe that when both Pathfinder and Cobra Commander got caught in it when it overloaded, it somehow altered Pathfinder's personality?" Psyche-Out asked.
"Yes," Ambush replied, "But, I think it's more than that."
"I don't know Ambush," Psyche-Out sighed, "Every time you've told me about your little spats with Pathfinder, that's been the explanation you've given me most of the time.
"Well this is not an ordinary spat." Ambush said. "I think he really has changed."
"Yes, you said that you thought it was more than an altered personality. What did you mean by that?"
"I think it's, like Cobra Commander and Pathfinder, switched bodies." Psyche-Out tried not to laugh, especially since he had just sipped his coffee again.
"Ambush, have you been reading Sci-Fi's comic books?" He quipped.
"Damn it Psyche-Out!" Ambush snapped, slamming his fist on the desk, "I'm not making this up!"
"Calm down Ambush. I'm not saying that you are making things up. I mean, a total personality transfer, it just, sounds impossible."
"Well if you still don't believe me, get this. Order, Law's dog, he tried to attack Pathfinder for no reason. And he's never done that to him until now. Then Pathfinder calls Order a flea-bitten mongrel. Yet, he loves animals, and would never insult Law's dog. Not unless he wants to get his ass handed to him by Law, which would've happened if I hadn't gotten in between them." Ambush explained.
"Hmm, that sounds similar to the time when Duke and several high-ranking officers got replaced with synthoid replicas. Junkyard attacked them, seemingly for no apparent reason until was discovered they weren't real." Psyche-Out said.
"But Pathfinder was not replaced with a synthoid. I was there, so I would've seen it happen. And a synthoid would've melted if it got zapped by that machine. Now, are you gonna help me or not?" Ambush folded his arms across his chest.
"Alright." Psyche-Out got up. "But what do you intend to do once we've confronted Pathfinder?"
"I don't know yet. We'll have to contact the research lab, tell them what's happened." Ambush's eyes widened when he saw Psyche-Out grab his side-arm. "Whoa, uh Psyche-Out, you don't intend on killing him, do you?"
"It's just a safety precaution. After all, if you believe Cobra Commander is inhabiting Pathfinder's body, I think I'm going to need this." Psyche-Out checked his gun to make sure it was loaded.
"Well yeah, but, couldn't you like, run a brain scan on him or something?" Ambush asked.
"I'm a psychologist Ambush. That's not exactly my line of work." Psyche-Out replied with a chuckle, "Besides, I doubt that Cobra Commander would co-operate willingly for us to know if he is inside Pathfinder's body."
"Still, it's my buddy out there. I don't want him dead." Ambush told him.
"I'll do my best to incapacitate him. But, I'm not guaranteeing anything. I may be a psychologist, but I'm also a proficient marksman." Psyche-Out replied as he and Ambush left his office.
Inside the room which Beachhead had been keeping sentry over, Pathfinder was still at the computer console attempting to break into its system. "Blast!" He cursed, after another one of his attempts to gain access had failed. Instead, he rifled through some of the file cabinets. "Doesn't GI Joe keep any top secret documents in here?" Pathfinder shouted, slamming the drawer shut. He sat back at the computer and tried again to gain access. Nothing. "If there's nothing top secret in here, what is so bloody important about this fucking room? Maybe I can contact Destro from here, tell him this was a total flop! UGH! Then I can get my body back!" This time, Pathfinder was successful in accessing Cobra's communications network from there, with Destro's face appearing on the screen, pissed off.
"What the hell? How did you get this comm channel?" Destro fumed, seeing Pathfinder's face on the screen at his end.
"Damn it Destro! It's me, Cobra Commander, you idiot!"
"That is not possible! Cobra Commander is at this base right now!"
"Listen to me you metal-faced twit! I'm not Pathfinder! I'm just stuck inside his body! When we both got zapped by Dr. Lasseter's mind-reading machine when it overloaded, it caused us to switch bodies! That jungle rat's mind is inside my body!" Pathfinder yelled.
"We shall see about that!" Destro growled, then the screen went blank.
"Stupid metal-faced son of bitch!" Pathfinder spat.
Outside, Psyche-Out and Ambush came around the corner, and found Beachhead lying on the floor, unconscious. "Beachhead!" They ran up to him. Kneeling beside him, Psyche-Out touched his neck, feeling for a pulse.
"He's still breathing, and he's still got a pulse." That was when Beachhead's eye's fluttered open, and he tried to sit up. "Lie still Beachhead. You've been shot. Now, who did this to you?" Beachhead moaned in pain as he lifted his head.
"Pathfinder." He barely said before succumbing to unconsciousness again, his head lying back on the floor. Psyche-Out got up and pressed a button on the communications panel on the wall.
"Stretcher, Lifeline, Beachhead's been shot. We need medical assistance."
"On our way." Stretcher replied.
"Psyche-Out, Mainframe may be in there. He may be hurt too." Ambush said.
"Better bring two gurneys. Mainframe may also be wounded." Psyche-Out told Stretcher.
"So did Beachhead say who it was?" Ambush asked.
"Yeah. He said it was Pathfinder." Psyche-Out replied.
"Well that tears it Psyche-Out. Now I know for sure that Cobra Commander is inside Pathfinder's body. Pathfinder would never anything like this."
"I think I'm starting to see it that way too Ambush." Psyche-Out pulled out his gun. "If Cobra Commander wanted to know any of our secrets, they're kept in there. We got to stop him."
"Okay. Just, don't hurt Pathfinder." Ambush said as Psyche-Out tapped a sequence of buttons on the panel to gain access to the room. "Good luck." Ambush reluctantly pulled out his side-arm as he positioned himself on the other side of the door. As it slid open, Pathfinder had his gun ready as Psyche-Out dove into the room to confront him. Ambush stayed behind the corner as gunfire rang out. One bullet made a pinging sound as it hit Psyche-Out's chest plate. He managed to hit Pathfinder in the arm, but it wasn't enough.
"AAAUUGH!" Psyche-Out screamed in pain as a bullet got him a little above the chest plate. His gun fell from his hand from the loss of his grip, clattering on the floor.
"Psyche-Out!" Ambush tried to rush in and rescue him, but was forced to duck back as Pathfinder fired his gun at him, the bullet ricocheting off the wall into the hallway.
"Come any closer and you friend bites the dust!" Pathfinder snarled. Psyche-Out tried to reach for his gun, but Pathfinder kicked it out of his reach. He shoved Psyche-Out to the floor. Walking towards him, the gun aimed at him, Pathfinder had Psyche-Out backed into a corner. Psyche-Out was leaning on his elbow as he tried to stem the blood flow from his wound. Ambush peered around the doorframe, just enough to catch a glimpse of Mainframe, also lying on the floor.
"Let Psyche-Out and Mainframe go, snake-breath!" Ambush yelled.
"So, you've finally figured it out huh Ambush?" Pathfinder's voice dripped with disdain.
"I already knew you weren't Pathfinder! I knew it when Order tried to attack you! I knew it when you lost your accent! Now let Psyche-Out and Mainframe go!"
"Ha! Fat chance, dust-for-brains! Once I've finished with them, you're next! Just like that damn mongrel dog!" Ambush took a pot-shot a Pathfinder, but missed. He ducked as Pathfinder fired back.
"Ambush, hold your fire!" Psyche-Out told him.
"But Psyche-Out-"
"I said hold your fire! That's an order!"
"Listen to your friend Ambush. It'll be the last order he'll ever make!" Pathfinder said with an evil grin. He pointed the gun at Psyche-Out again.
"You're, not gonna shoot an unarmed man are you?" Psyche-Out asked.
"That's GI Joe's philosophy, not mine." Pathfinder sneered.
"If you kill me, you'll have all of GI Joe out for retribution. Do you really want that?"
"Don't try any of your psychological trickery on me! It's not going to work!" Pathfinder snapped, cocking the trigger. He had the gun aimed for Psyche-Out's head, between his eyes. Ambush saw this, and pointed his gun at Pathfinder's back. I don't care if I disobey your orders, Psyche-Out, Ambush thought, It's not worth losing your life over. Psyche-Out squeezed his eyes shut, and raised his hand to his face, bracing himself for that final bullet...
BANG!
To Be Continued
Thanks for reading! Don't forget to review! I'll try to have part two up before you all go crazy from the cliffhanger!