It took a while, but here is the first chapter of the sequel to 'The Road Ahead'. This story begins right at the end of the first story. Kim and Ron will now have to face life after High School.
Disclaimer: Kim Possible and related are the property of Disney which, contrary to common belief, I do not own.
Thanks to Slipgate for beta-reading this chapter and coming up with great suggestions and ideas.
A new path
Chapter 1: Highs and Lows
Kim and Ron were enjoying the beautiful sunset in the Pacific while sitting propped up on a blanket and holding hands.
"One more sunset?" Ron asked.
Kim smiled and nodded. "Okay, but then we really have to head home… we're closing in on Japan anyway."
The teens got into the Sloth and flew off in a westward direction, catching up with the setting sun.
"It's really happening, our boy did it."
"And you doubted him."
"He seemed to lose his edge… once we get him in charge that will all change."
"Yes, but we still need to get there in time with our lawyers or she will figure out a way out of this."
"No she won't; she got arrested by the big dog himself, even though Will did the actual arrest."
"So Will won't be there when we get there? That could be trouble."
"No, him being there would only make him look like an usurper. We have to take the reins and assign him. The plan is solid."
"That invasion came just at the right time, didn't it?"
"It would have been better if we had received word in advance. Now we almost lost a day getting there."
The two politicians, together with a small army of lawyers, stepped into their own private jet and set out for Global Justice headquarters.
"Wow…"
Shego grinned, still feeling lightheaded herself. "Yeah, that was pretty good."
Drakken's eyes were wide as he continued staring at the ceiling. "Wow…"
After receiving a medal of honor and the promise of a full pardon, after the reception that followed, and after Drakken's slightly bizarre show of affection by using his plant power to pull Shego into a hug of sorts, the two villains had decided to return to one of the backup lairs to recover a bit from the past few days.
They got to about five minutes over the ocean when the fever started.
Shego was still not sure which of them had acted first; she could only vaguely remember flipping the autopilot switch, preventing them from crashing into the water, before she made a dive for the blue-skinned villain.
What happened in the next couple of hours was nothing more than a vague memory, although Shego knew that somewhere in the ocean floated a blue lab coat and a black and green jumpsuit.
"Wow…"
Shego chuckled and snapped her fingers in front of Drakken's eyes. "Ok Dr. D, snap out of it."
Drakken blinked and seemed to come to his senses. Then he looked at his former employee – "Can't really call her that anymore." – who was lying next to him.
"So… what now?"
Shego shrugged. "We'll get a shower, get dressed, and eat some breakfast."
"Shego! You know what I mean, what about us?"
Shego grinned; toying with Drakken was even more fun now. "We'll have to go over to Global Justice to get that pardon, unless you want to try to win back the villain world after saving Earth."
Drakken frowned. "Good point, and that pardon will give us lots of opportunities… Shego! Stop distracting me. How will we go on after… well, after last night?"
For once, Shego felt that a sarcastic remark would do damage even she didn't want to occur. "Well, last night was madness… and I mean that in a good way. But you have to admit we were not really thinking."
Drakken seemed to get more and more uncomfortable. "Well, we can think now."
But Shego wasn't about to let him get away like that. "What do you want?"
"You." Drakken clasped his hands over his mouth the moment he had said it, but it was already too late. Shego sat partially up and looked at the former villain with a strange look of curiosity.
"Maybe we should discuss this at breakfast," Drakken said meekly, "after we've had time to think about it."
Shego stared at him a little longer, and Drakken couldn't help noticing that the corners of her mouth turned upward a bit. "I think you're right." She then got up and walked to the shower, smirking as she heard Drakken gasp at the sight she gave him.
"Hi mom," Kim said to the image of her mother that was displayed on the Sloth's communication system. "Sorry we only left that one short message. But we just really needed a little time out."
"That's okay honey," Kim's mother said. "We're glad you two are okay." She took a step back from the screen so that Kim's father also became visible. "Since our house took quite some damage from the Lowardian invasion, Dean and Jean invited us to stay with them."
The look on her parents' faces and the slight gulp she heard from Ron made Kim's weirdar go off at all levels. "What kind of damage to the house?"
"Kim, just come over to Ron's home, we'll talk about it there."
But Kim shook her head, now in a complete worry. "I-I need to know. Ron, we'll head over to my house first."
Seeing their daughter wouldn't take no for an answer, Kim's parents conceded. "Okay… it's pretty bad. We'll meet you two there."
"Pretty bad is an understatement," Kim muttered as she stared at the flattened terrain that used to be her home. "They aimed at this, didn't they?" She looked at Jim and Tim when she said that.
Her brothers nodded slightly. "Yeah, from the footage from our satellite we found out one of the walkers landed right on top of it."
Kim took a shivering breath and felt her parents walk up next to her and each put an arm around her. "I… I didn't know they would… that they could…"
"It's not your fault Kimmie," her father said, "it's never the fault of good people if bad people take offense at their actions."
"I guess you're right," Kim muttered, fighting back tears. "But I still put you at a tremendous risk."
"And we're willing to take that risk without hesitation for all the good you give to the world." Her mother said with a smile.
Ron had stood beside the family moment, not sure how to act. But as he looked around, he noticed a piece of plush lying in the street.
Immediately recognizing the present he had given Kim many years ago, despite the damage it had taken, Ron was unsure what to do next. But Kim had already walked up to him, wanting to include him in the group hug. "What have you got there, Ron?"
Kim gasped when she saw the badly damaged Pengaroo, and suddenly she couldn't hold back the tears anymore.
"KP?" Ron was now really unsure of how to react, except hold his girlfriend as she cried on his shoulder. "We can fix it, or we can buy a new one…"
"That's not it," Kim sniffed, "sure we can repair Pengaroo, and rebuild the house… we did that before… but everything inside, the memories, the photos… everything that was us…"
"We're still here," Ron said, "we can make new memories…" He looked helplessly at Kim's parents.
Kim's parents had stood aside for the moment, but now they joined the hug. "Kimmie, do you really think a rocket scientist and a neurosurgeon with kids like the three of you… make that four of you… were not prepared for this?"
Kim blinked back some tears and looked at her father. "You prepared for an alien invasion?"
"Not that per se, but we did make copies of every picture we've taken, and even some replicas of some of the prizes you've won. After the Diablo incident, your mother and I decided to have the basement reinforced and stash our copies there… and some of the originals while we kept the copies around the house."
Jim frowned. "Why didn't you tell us?"
Mr. Dr. Possible smirked. "Because you would have tried to figure out something that could break into Hephaestus reinforced steel."
Jim and Tim didn't know how to react to that, so they remained silent. Kim, on the other hand, seemed to have restored her confidence. "So the basement is still intact?"
"Uhm," Mr. Dr. Possible rubbed his neck. "We haven't really checked yet."
He took out a small remote and pressed a couple of buttons. Within seconds a small rumble could be heard in the remains of the house. And a while after that a hatch opened in the front yard.
"Seems to be working," Kim's father said, but Kim had already rushed into the basement.
"It's all there!" she exclaimed moments later when she emerged with a box filled with pictures. "Daddy, you're the best."
They looked through the rubble of the house for a while longer, but their home had really been shattered. The only small consolation was that their super premium insurance included attacks from outer space – and charged heftily for it – and that a couple of construction organizations had already offered their services for restoring the Possible residence; some to repay a favor, some so they could claim they had helped rebuild Kim Possible's house. The Possibles quickly agreed that they preferred someone who genuinely wanted to help them.
Shortly after, they headed for the Stoppable house, which had sustained no damage whatsoever, and tried to get the small amount of spare clothes placed and sleeping arrangements settled.
"I'm surprised your plants didn't do anything last night," Shego commented as she watched one of Drakken's vines grab the bottle of peanut butter from across the table.
Drakken shrugged, slightly uncomfortable. "I'm not entirely sure how they work." He had not finished when a new set of petals formed around his neck.
Shego grinned. "That I did see a lot last night… it was actually a nice touch."
The mirth did not last long, and soon Drakken and Shego were eating breakfast in uncomfortable silence.
Drakken was the first to say anything. "So… uhm… how do we continue after this?"
"I guess sleeping with the boss is not a great idea, huh?" Shego replied. "Besides, my contract is automatically disbanded when you turn to the good side."
"What?" Shego actually felt the pain herself when she saw Drakken's crestfallen expression. His sandwich dangled in his suddenly limp hands as he looked at her like a lost puppy.
"I'm not saying I'm quitting," Shego hastened to say – "Wow, never thought I'd say something like that." – "But, well… I don't think our working relation works out with what we have now."
"So you do want to give this a try?"
"Walked right into that one…" Shego was silent for a moment as she actually thought about it. "You know what, I think I do want to give this a try."
The Stoppable house was beginning to get a bit stuffed with the addition of the Possible clan. Fortunately Slim and Joss had offered to take Nana home with them until transportation back to Florida could be arranged.
It had been agreed that Mr. and Mrs. Dr. Possible got the guest room. Jim and Tim had opted to stay in the tree house, but couldn't; the building had not gained stability since a year before and it needed some serious repair before people could safely stay inside for a prolonged amount of time.
So the twins would bunk with Ron while Kim shared the baby room with Hana, who fortunately slept through the night these days.
By the time everything was set up, it was only early afternoon. Kim and Ron were deciding on what to do for the rest of the day when a black car pulled up.
Kim immediately recognized the driver as Agent Smith, and she concluded that the man sitting next to him would be Agent Smith.
"Can we help you?" she asked. But then the backseat door opened and an elderly man stepped out.
"Yes, I think you can help us very much. Kim Possible, we immediately need your help at the Global Justice headquarters."
Betty Director was not ready to give up yet.
Will Du had brought her to a safe house that was also often used to detain criminals to make sure their associates didn't come after them. For some reason the agent seemed very confident, so confident even that he hadn't even bothered to properly detain her, and he had turned his back on her after sending the other GJ agents away.
"Before you strike me down," Will suddenly said, shocking Dr. Director because that was exactly what she had just been considering, "you might want to ask me what is going on."
"I think we're past that," she said, but she did not try to make a move at her former number one agent anymore, at least for now. "But sure, why don't you enlighten me."
Will chuckled as he turned around. "This is the first time I've ever managed to pull the wool over your eyes. But it was also necessary."
Dr. Director eyed him suspiciously with her good eye. "Say what you want to say, Will."
"Why don't I let the images speak for themselves." Will switched on the television. It started to play what appeared to be a live image of the Global Justice headquarters. "We may have to wait for a little while, but I'm sure you will enjoy this."
"So can you now tell us what is going on?" Kim asked, slightly irritated.
The man had introduced himself as Z – and expanded that to Zachary when Kim merely arched an eyebrow – and had claimed to stand above Dr. Director. A quick call to Wade had confirmed the man's high security status, but not much more.
Eventually, Kim's inability to refuse a request for help had led to her and Ron agreeing to see what was going on at GJ.
Zachary merely smiled. "I could, but that would go against the request my associate made."
"Look mister," Ron replied, "neither of us is really in the mood for playing games. KP lost her home for crying out loud."
"Besides, what good can we do if we don't know what we're up against?" Kim added.
Their host gave them another smile, though this one was more saddened. "You are not yet able to fight what you are up against. However, Global Justice needs you if they want to come out of this as the organization they used to be."
Kim wanted to say more, but they had already arrived at one of the tunnel entrances that led directly to the GJ headquarters.
The car stopped and the trio stepped out and into one of the waiting tube rides. This one actually had seats.
"Wow, I didn't even know GJ had these," Ron commented as he sat down in the surprisingly comfortable seat.
"It would be a shame to spoil all surprises, wouldn't it?" Zachary replied. "Besides, at my age the usual rides are a bit too rough. I prefer some subtleness."
"We have permission to land at the Global Justice airport."
"That's odd. I thought we had to pull out a lot of laws before they gave up."
"Maybe Will has already convinced everyone."
"That would save us a lot of valuable time. Pilot, set the plane down. There's no use waiting for them to change their mind."
The Global Justice headquarters was frantic with activity, and it appeared to Kim that several agents did not belong to the crime-fighting organization.
"Where's Dr. Director?" she asked, but Zachary seemed to be busy talking to some of his people.
"They just arrived?" the elderly man asked with a slight grin as he addressed his assistant. "I know I'm supposed to be impartial, but I can't wait to see how this will develop."
Frowning at the slightly child-like glee emanating from Zachary, Kim decided to ask again. "What is going on?"
But then the door opened again and a man and a woman all but barged in, closely followed by a small army of well-suited lawyers.
"Ah, Mr. and Mrs. Du, how nice of you to drop by," Zachary said in greeting.
Ron's eyes widened. "Will's parents? Really, what is going on?"
However, the teens were pulled into the background by Zachary's assistant. "You better let Z work this one out."
Will's parents smiled at Zachary in a way that dripped insincerity. "Mr. Z, we cannot express how pleased we are that you finally took our warnings into account and relieved Dr. Director from duty."
Kim gasped, but a restraining hand on her shoulder prevented her from interrupting. When she looked back, she saw Z's assistant shaking his head.
Zachary merely nodded. "Yes, it became quite clear that Global Justice could no longer work under this strain. It is therefore imperative that the leadership of the organization is placed on a capable person who is immune to blackmail and corruption."
Mr. Du nodded eagerly. "While it may be impossible to find one that spotless, I do think we have the perfect candidate available."
"Impossible, you say?" Zachary couldn't repress a hint of a grin. "But I agree about the perfect candidate."
"Great," Mrs. Du replied, "then you wouldn't mind us being there at the inauguration?"
Zachary's grin was now obvious, despite him trying to hide it. "It would be a true pleasure, and given the circumstances I would prefer to start right away."
Mr. Du frowned. "Isn't Will currently guarding Dr. Director?"
"Why yes, but don't worry, he does have a direct video connection. And he assured me that he is perfectly happy to watch it from the holding facility along with Dr. Director."
Z's statement was met with several confused frowns, but since he had the initiative, he decided to continue.
"Kimberly Anne Possible."
While Kim had already been witness to the conversation, Z's calling to her caused her to look at him with surprise.
"Given your status as a Global Justice agent, combined with the fact that you took on the duty to lead the organization in absence of its leader, I hereby instate you as the commander of Global Justice for at least the duration of Dr. Director's trial."
"WHAT?"
Even on the small TV screen, Kim's shock was obvious.
Will grinned. "I'm so glad I'm taping this. Even after coming to terms with her being plainly better than me, this is pure gold."
Betty had not been able to speak much, but that could have been because her jaw seemed almost unhinged. "You-you planned this out?"
"With the help of Z himself," Will replied smugly. "And he was right. Not to be cruel, but the shock on my parents' faces is even better than that on Kim's."
Betty slumped down and held her hands up in defeat as realization set in. "You've been planning this for months, haven't you?"
Will nodded. "Although we had to improvise a bit after the invasion. We wanted to wait it out a little longer and have everything set up more properly. But I think this worked out just as well."
"So, what now?"
Will turned more serious. "There will still be a trial to determine how Global Justice could have degenerated so much, and I am going to take my responsibilities in that. But with Kim in the hot seat, we actually have the time to sit this out without the risk of GJ falling apart after all."
"I'm not sure whether to thank you or slap you," Dr. Director said. "I think I'll let that depend on the outcome of the conversation at the headquarters."
Zachary had to admit that Will Du had been right; the look on Kim's face was indeed priceless, but now it was time for more serious action.
Kim, on the other hand, was in a complete stupor, and Ron wasn't doing much better. "What do you mean? You can't just appoint me as the leader of GJ."
"She's right," one of the lawyers agreed, "she may have saved the planet, but that doesn't mean she is trained for this."
And with that, the pieces suddenly fell into place for Kim. "All that GJ training I've been doing! You set this up!" She pointed an accusing finger at Zachary. "Somehow you, Will and Dr. Director goaded me into taking that training."
Z smiled and nodded. "Almost correct. Dr. Director had no part in this."
The lawyers of the Du family weren't about to give up. "As you have just admitted, this was set up. And Miss Possible does not seem inclined to take your offer."
"This has nothing to do with willingness, or with offers," Z said with a grin. "This is strict playing by the rulebook, and I know you are very familiar with the rules regarding Global Justice."
He gestured to his assistant, who handed him a small stack of papers. "Miss Possible has signed an agreement to lead Global Justice in the face of a breakdown of communications or in the absence of the current leader. However, the contract also expands to taking over duty when the current commander is lawfully suspended from duty."
"But… that's just if KP wants to take the role of commander, right?" Ron asked.
"We were not willing to take the risk of Miss Possible disagreeing," Zachary replied, "so we made sure the language of the contract is binding for all parties."
"I though that was just so Will couldn't squirm out of it," Kim muttered. "Wait, Will already knew about this when we were nearly caught during that stupid challenge?"
Z shrugged. "The bunker was designed not to be detected. We were aiming for just forcing you to spend a few days in boredom. But even if you were captured, we could just pay the ransom."
Kim sighed. "Mind if I have Wade take a look at it?"
"By all means." Zachary handed her a copy of the contract. "And I assume you also want one?" He had his assistant also give several copies to the group of lawyers.
It didn't take long before both Wade and the lawyers had to agree that the contract was solid, much to Kim and Will's parents' dismay. That was probably one of the few things they could agree on.
"Would you rather have them take command of Global Justice?" Zachary inquired when he noticed Kim's expression.
"No," Kim was forced to admit. "But it would have been nice to keep us in the loop."
"One can't please everyone," Zachary replied with a chuckle. Then, in a lower voice, he added, "Now, I would like to instate you before those lawyers find ways to stall the process."
"I can't believe it. You did it…" Betty said while shaking her head as she and Will watched Will's parents and their lawyers walk back to their plane, seemingly defeated.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Will replied with a sarcastic grin.
Betty sighed. "I'm sorry, but you have to understand how I felt about this for the past year."
"Don't worry about that," Will said, "What's past is past. But we're far from done yet. Knowing my parents, they will not give up this easily."
Dr. Director couldn't help but to smile; the future finally looked a bit brighter. "We'll get through this. If two teenagers and two villains can save the planet, we can save Global Justice."
Instating Kim as the new commander of Global Justice took a surprisingly short time.
"No need for ceremony, right?" Zachary said dryly as he led Kim and Ron to Dr. Director's office.
"Can I have a word with Dr. Director?" Kim asked. "I feel it's wrong to just barge in and take over."
Z thought about that for a moment. "You can speak with her tomorrow, but it has to be interrogation-style, so there will be a recording of the meeting. The Dus will use any connection between you and Dr. Director to weaken your position and then we're back to square one."
"But we've been dealing with her for years now," Ron pointed out.
"True," Zachary admitted. "But there is no official evidence of a personal investment in Global Justice or Dr. Director for you, and I want to keep it that way until this whole thing is resolved."
"I guess I can live with that." Kim looked at the desk apprehensively, still not entirely sure how this had happened. "Just for the sake of argument, what would you have done if I had refused the position?"
The elderly man shrugged. "We would have taken the contract you signed as an agreement, and then we'd probably tie you to the desk chair and give you three meals a day and maybe some games to keep you occupied."
Kim stared at the man, unable to determine whether he was serious or making one of his sarcastic jokes. She decided to go for the latter. "Well… so, what am I supposed to do?"
"You've had your training. You should know by now." Z grinned as he turned around. "I have other business to attend to, but I'm sure I will see you in the future."
When Kim and Ron returned back to Ron's home later that day, their parents were curious what had been the problem, and whether their children had been sent on yet another mission so shortly after the Lowardian invasion.
"Not exactly like that," Kim said, "but I don't have to worry about finding a job for the summer."
"You mean you get paid?" Ron asked.
"Doy." Kim rolled her eyes. "Do you think GJ works only with volunteers? We are the exceptions there."
"Aw man," Ron muttered, "I'd have signed up too if I had known that."
Kim chuckled. "I clearly remember you getting all worked up about all the paperwork that was part of the job."
"Well… yes… but it still pays better than Smarty Mart."
"Mind filling us in a bit?" Mr. Dr. Possible asked; so far, the Possible and Stoppable parents had no clear idea of what happened at Global Justice.
Kim briefly explained the sitch.
"While I do partly understand their motives, I don't much care for their 'keep everyone out of the loop' attitude," Kim's mother said.
"Me too," Kim replied, "but that's just how it is, so I've agreed to hold the fort until Dr. Director can return."
"As long as you are careful," Kim's father said, "from what you just told us about that Agent Du's parents, they're miles of bad road."
"I don't care how she got involved! Find any dirt on that girl, and make sure to find something we can crack her with."
The lawyers looked at each other and shrugged; the crazier the request, the higher the pay. Morals were for idealists.
Mrs. Du put her hand on her husband's shoulder. "Maybe we should have a word with Will as well? Perhaps he can explain a bit better what is going on."
"I know what is going on. He has been influenced by that so-caller 'leader' of Global Justice who doesn't know how to handle any threat and is always in a dispute with her brother. But still… have a talk with him, show him that we know that a family should unite to prevail."
"What about Z?" One of the lawyers asked a bit too eagerly. "Do you want us to bring him down as well?"
Mr. Du shook his head. "Forget about that old man. He's truly out of reach. But he can't extend his reach nearly as far as he seems to think. You just make sure to take Kim Possible down; he'll be forced to watch helplessly from the sidelines. His petty games are over."
A/N: And that's the first chapter down. I hope you liked it.
