CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Yori often felt somewhat left out when the other girls began to talk about things like cosmetics and fashion. As much as she tried he simply couldn't get worked up about the latest Platinum lipstick or the hottest fashions from the Club Banana label on the plane. She simply retreated to the back of the aircraft to train as much as the limitations of the aircraft would allow. However, from time to time, she would pause to listen in to the conversation, just in case there was something juicy to overhear but she was invariably disappointed. About the only "excitement" was watching Shego undo her body suit enough so she could show Kim her newest bra and panties from Victoria's Closet. 'It's an original but I got it for a mere €350! Can you believe it?'

It wasn't as if she hadn't seen Shego and the others in various stages of undress. The girls often went up to the roof of the apartment block to sunbathe in bikinis, with the exception of Shego, who preferred to wear more modest swimwear. Even after four months she still could not believe how well the four of them seemed to get on and, if she was to be honest, she was getting jealous. She desperately wanted to enjoy the same sort of intimacy enjoyed between the other three girls, especially Monique and Shego.

As they got closer to their destination the conversation died down as the girls turned to the more important issues at hand.

Kim groaned, 'I asked Wade to make the battle suit less clingy. Look, you can see my nipples through this thing.'

Shego chuckled. 'The Princess' secret weapon of mass distraction: her nipple revealing battle suit!'

Kim groaned at the lameness of the joke. At least he did add the other feature she'd asked for. Tapping on her arm she changed the colour from its default setting of white to a brown-green camouflage colour, in part because a darker single colour tended to attract too much attention from those who thought she was a latex-wearing fetishist or, worse, into bondage and discipline. This colour scheme made her look more military, although it didn't compliment her red hair at all.

Suddenly turning serious Shego began what Yori sarcastically called her "pep" talk to the group. Like Mr Barkin she stood up in front of everyone. Using a white board taped to the side of the cabin she explained the sitch to the group.

'Marx is most likely to have kept the basic outlay that Drakken used when he owned the lair so I expect the cells to be at the bottom. They will be guarded by some of his thugs but they'll be easy enough to deal with. Henchmen are pretty much the same the world over: they'll fight only until they get hurt then they're gone.'

She was interrupted by Monique asking, 'Does he still have those flower thingies growing around his neck?'

Irritably she answered, 'Yes. Try to focus, buffoon.'

Monique sulked and said virtually nothing more. Shego continued: 'I'm sure Princess can take down Marx. Drakken is mine. Monique can sort out Monkey Fist.'

Monique inquired, 'What if we bump into Bonnie or Tori?'

'Bump back hard,' Shego answered coldly.

An announcement came over the public address system. 'We're coming into Colorado air space. Please grab your parachutes and prepare to jump.'

'Oh, man!' Monique whined. She'd been jumping out of aircraft for years but she still hated it as much as she did when she jumped for the first time but she still grabbed her parachute, as did the others.

The aircraft began to descend as the cargo door at the back began to lower. Shego gave an increasingly apprehensive Monique an encouraging kiss on the lips. It took a few minutes before the cargo door was fully opened. With a shrug of her shoulders Monique jumped first, followed by Kim. Yori was pushed out by Shego who jumped out last. Four parachutes opened as they cleared the aircraft.

In the cockpit the pilot put through a coded radio signal. 'Mahomet et ses apôtres sont sur le chemin de la montagne.'

It was the perfect landing for most of them, except for Monique who forgot to roll when they hit the ground. But they were able to get themselves sorted out quickly, making sure their parachutes were folded up and packed into their backpacks. Then they reassembled as a group before they made their way across the farm paddocks towards the mountain where Marx's lair was located. They saw no sign of guards or patrols anywhere. This was unsurprising as super villains usually didn't bother with such things as they gave away the fact there was a secret lair in the area, although Shego had always found it amusing that on the main road to the mountain was a road sign stating "SECRET LAIR".

It took the best part of an hour before they reached the lair itself. Still no guards or CCTV cameras could be seen. This left both Kim and Shego confused.

'Is this the right mountain?' Kim queried.

'I'm pretty sure it is,' Shego answered. 'But it's changed.'

Yori suddenly yelled, 'Hey! Someone's shooting at -.' She slumped to the ground. A dart could be seen protruding from her leg.

Shego screamed, 'Ambush! Find somewhere to hide!'

But there was nowhere to hide. There were no trees or rocks to hide amongst so all they could do was to dive to the ground and bury themselves in the snow. Another shot was fired but it missed its intended target. It landed between Monique's legs, terrifying the girl. A few more darts flew past, landing at various points around Kim and Shego but it seemed to both females that whoever was shooting at them wasn't a particularly good shot.

Kim caught a glimpse of something flashing in the sunlight.

Tapping Shego on the foot she pointed to where she saw the flash. Shego fired up her green plasma and fired two blasts in rapid succession. She heard girlish screams. Cautiously the two crept along until they saw the hole that had once been the entrance to the lair. In the midst of the rubble were three girls barely older than Kim, dressed in the uniform of the Organisation. They had been hurt but not enough to cause serious injury. Shego grabbed one of the rifles and checked it out: a tranquilizer gun of a high calibre. She allowed herself a wry smile.

'What's so amusing?' Kim queried.

'Typical of Marx to use a New Zealand invention,' she answered. 'It's a rifle patented by Colin Murdoch in the 1950s.'

'Never heard of him,' Kim stated dismissively.

'Virtually no one has,' Shego answered as she bashed the moaning girl she snatched it from unconscious. 'He invented the tranquilizer gun and the disposable hypodermic syringe.'

With a wave of the hand she indicated to Monique to follow them through the entrance tunnel into the lair. And, for once, even Shego was rendered speechless as they found themselves in a garage with dozens of car parks. They walked across it, surprised there was no one present to challenge them, but taking no chances for Shego knew Augen was always one to deliver an unexpected surprise or two. It took a good few minutes before they reached the end of the garage. At the elevator they paused.

Kim was just about to press the button when Shego flamed up her hands. She had seen the numbers on the display counting down.

The elevator pinged.

The doors opened.