You still don't understand?  All right, I'll talk slower.  THESE..... NOT.... BELONG..... TO.... ME!!

The Lazarus Factor

Chapter 8 - Unwelcome Friends

"Friends may come and go, but enemies accumulate." - Thomas Jones

Two Nights Ago

            It was like waking up from a dream.  He stirred slightly as he felt a tingling at his neck.  As it got stronger he slowly began to become conscious of his surroundings.  At first he wasn't worried at the darkness, he just assumed he was in his room.

            "Wow," he thought to himself, "what a dream.  I've got to stop eating so late."  But when he tried to sit up he hit his head.  He wasn't sure what was going on.  There seemed to be something a couple feet above his bed.  He soon became panicked as he felt to the sides and found that they too were blocked off.  Desperately lashing out in every direction, he soon found that there was no way out.  "I'm in a box!" he thought wildly.  His mind was screaming at him to get out, but there didn't seem to be a way.  Finally, in a state of blind panic, he started beating on the lid of his small prison.  Time passed by unnoticed as he pounded on the surface above him until, suddenly, there was a loud crack.  "It's breaking," he thought joyfully, doubling his efforts.  Suddenly, his fist slammed through the lid, but instead of the fresh air he'd been seeking, dirt came pouring into the box.

            "I'm underground," the thought dimly registered.  Had he broken free only to be suffocated in dirt?  A rising anger made him clench his fists.  He would NOT die this way.  Shoving himself up through the hole in the lid, he began scraping and pulling the dirt, pushing it down into the box.  He wasn't sure how long he dug through the earth, not even being able to breath most of the time.

            Above ground everything was peaceful, then a hand clawed its way out of the ground.  It groped around for a couple seconds until it found the sword sticking in the ground.  It instinctively grabbed the blade, latching on so hard that it began cutting into the skin.  Using the sword as leverage, another hand pushed its way through the ground, followed soon by the head and shoulders of Ron Stoppable.  Pulling himself free of the earth, he looked around.  He was confused, not sure what was going on or where he was.  As his eyes fell on the sword, however, everything came to him in a rush.

            He remembered the base, the engine, and his death.  Then another vision came to him.  He felt the presence of people, lots of people.  There was a connection between the people, he could feel it clearly.  They had been scattered across the globe for decades, but now they had all been drawn here, to Middleton.  He suddenly felt a strange emotion rise in his gut, a feeling that brought a predatory grin to his face.  They would be easy to track, and track them he would.  He picked up the scabbard and pulled the sword from the ground.  Yes, he would track down every last one of them, and he would kill them.

Present

            Kim stared at the thing in front of her.  She couldn't bring herself to call it Ron, not after what she had just witnessed.  This person had just slaughtered a room full of people and had jammed knives into both of her legs without a hint of emotion.  Her Ron would never have done these things.  She watched as he ripped into the chest of the dead man he was standing over, pulled something out and again turned to Kim with that same mocking grin on his face.  He started to slowly walk towards her, not in a menacing way, a casual walk like he was taking a stroll in the park.  Kim's mind screamed at her to move, to run away.  There were a couple options open to her, the exit was to her left and the microphone stand was still lying beside her, but her body wouldn't respond.  All she could do was watch as the nightmare walked closer and closer.

            As he came within an arm's reach of her she managed to pull herself up, leaning her back against the wall, as if trying to escape through the concrete itself.  He walked right up to her, their noses almost touching, the sword coming up between them to rest just under her throat.  As he held the sword to her jugular with one hand, he reached down with the other, yanking out the knife imbedded in her thigh.  Kim cried out in pain, and again when he pulled out the other one.  Tears were starting to fall from the corners of her eyes as she stared into they eyes of "Ron".  But where Ron's old eyes were filled with feeling and laughter, in these eyes she saw nothing.  They were empty with nothing but a cold gleam in them, like ice.  She felt the sword press against her throat and she squeezed her eyes shut, unable to look at those eyes any longer.  Gritting her teeth, she waited for the inevitable.

            "Geez, KP," a slightly amused voice laughed, "you act like I was going to kill you or something."  Kim's eyes slowly opened at the gentle voice and once again looked into Ron's eyes.  This time, however, the coldness was gone, replaced by the old warmth she had come to know.

            "Ron?" she asked hesitantly, afraid that any sudden moves would chase away her old friend and leave that hideous killer.  But the warmth stayed, and Ron flashed a bright, friendly smile.

            "So how have you and Rufus been doing?" he asked.  Kim didn't answer.  All the bodies in the room seemed to disappear, the sword at her throat didn't matter, and the blood covering Ron's hands was forgotten.  None of it mattered anymore, this was her Ron.  Her funny, optimistic, silly friend who could always brighten her day.

            "RON!" she cried happily, throwing her arms around his neck and holding him as tightly as she could.  Ron wrapped his arms around her, hugging her back.  Kim didn't know how he had come back to life, she didn't care.  All that mattered was that he was here and he was alive.  However, her joy was cut short when she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her neck.

            "Sorry, Kim," said Ron, holding her against him tightly, preventing her from defending herself, "but I'm sure sensei and the others are on their way by now, and I'd rather not be here when they arrive."  Kim struggled against Ron's grip, but he held her fast with one arm.  His other hand was clamped to her neck, two fingers pressing into a soft spot near her throat.  She began to feel light-headed and darkness began to swim at the edges of her vision.  Her struggles lessened until she hung limp in his arms.  As the blackness overtook her, she looked up once more into Ron's eyes, only to find the cold, lifeless eyes of the killer once more.  Ron lowered Kim's body to the floor, but before he could leave a gasp from behind made him stop.

            Behind him stood Yori, her eyes wide in shock.  Her gaze went from Ron to the bodies around the room, to Kim, lying motionless on the floor, and finally back to Ron.  Ron smiled and took a step toward her, causing Yori to jump back in fear.  She pulled out the dagger strapped to her back and held it in front of her, pointing it shakily at the advancing Ron.  Pausing for a second he grinned at the weapon, and again advanced toward her.

            "What's the matter, Yori," he said in mock gentleness, "aren't you happy to see me?"  He continued to approach her, making her back up until she bumped into the wall behind her.

            "You...k..killed them?" Yori stammered softly.

            "Yes," Ron answered calmly.

            "All of them?"

            "Yes."

            "Kim...too?"

            "Don't be silly," Ron answered as if he was comforting a small child, "I only cut off the oxygen to her brain for a minute.  She'll wake up soon."  He was now only a couple feet from Yori and he continued to walk forward until the point of her dagger pressed into his chest.  "Are you really going to use that?"  He looked down at the dagger and back up to her.

            "I...I've... got to," she whispered, "you're... a killer."  An even bigger grin spread across Ron's face.

            "Yes," he said, matter-of-factly, "but isn't that what you want?"

            "What?" Yori was starting to panic as Ron brought his hand up and closed it around her dagger, pulling it to the side, allowing him to step right up to her.

            "Isn't that what you want?" he repeated, bringing the sword up to rest just under her jaw line.  "Isn't this what you really long for?  Fighting.  Over and over.  Never stopping?"  Yori's breath came in short gasps as Ron slid the Lotus Blade along her jaw, letting the edge slide lightly along her throat.

            "I…don't.." she stammered, unable to think straight.

            "Don't you wait impatiently for the next time?" Ron's face was now only centimeters from hers.  "Don't you secretly love the moment just as you start an attack?"  His voice had dropped to little more than a whisper.  "You keep trying to stop me….. but aren't you just longing to join in the fight?"

            The door to the club suddenly burst open with a crash.  Lt. Yun and a group of the order's fighters spilled into the room, stopping short when they saw Ron with the sword to Yori's throat.

            "Stoppable?" Lt. Yun spoke in disbelief.  Then, noticing the scene in front of him, drew his gun and pointed it at Ron.  "Move away from her, now."  Ron smiled, suddenly dodging to the side and bringing the sword up in front of him.  Yun fired twice, the first bullet whizzing by Ron's ear while the second clanged loudly as it ricocheted off the Lotus Blade.  Spinning around, Ron caught the underside of a table with the sword and flipped it toward the group.  Yun and the others covered their heads as bottles and plates crashed around them.  By the time the looked up, Ron had disappeared.

            "Are you alright?" Yun asked, hurrying over to Yori.  Yori nodded and Yun went to check on Kim.  Yori leaned against the wall, her arms wrapped around her stomach as she watched the others revive Kim.  They had burst in right after Ron's last question and she was grateful for the noise the door had made.  So loud that it had hidden her whispered answer of 'yes'.

Next:  What is REALLY going on.