The Devil Comes Back to Retroville

by Gary D. Snyder

Part 16:

Had anyone been cruising several hundred miles above the mid-Pacific region they would have been treated to a wonderful view of the Earth's terminator as it slowly moved across the broad sapphire expanse of glittering water. Although it was a glorious show it was nonetheless a daily event and much the same from day to day, with little change in the daily pattern of light and shadow that marked the passing of days. Today, however, was an exception. Without warning a small brightly-colored object appeared in the skies, streaking upwards toward the outer reaches of the atmosphere in frantic haste, almost as though hunted by some relentless demon. A closer look would have revealed that this might very well have been the case as a massive shape shrouded in shadow would have been seen against the half-lit planet below in close pursuit of the craft.

Inside the spaceship Jimmy Neutron had no interest in the beautiful panorama that lay spread beneath and behind him. Satisfied that the dark matter meteor was safely clear and no longer a threat he parted company with the unwelcome cosmic visitor and wheeled his vessel in a great semicircle back towards his planet. It had been nearly twenty minutes since Cindy had last spoken and his only thought now was to drive the Strato XL back into the lower life-sustaining regions of the atmosphere. He knew every limitation of the vehicle he was piloting and he pushed it to its limits as he powered its way into the thickening layers of air like a hypersonic bullet. Only when the increased drag on the craft told him that he was safely within the atmosphere did he throttle back. At the same time he slammed his fist against a large red button, firing the explosive bolts that jettisoned the clear canopy free of the rocket to fall in a graceful arc towards the water far below. The wind whistling past was brisk but warmer than the chilled confines of the cockpit had been.

Got to find someplace to get her warm, he thought. There should be some atoll or island somewhere around to land. I have to revive her as soon as possible. If only it hasn't been too long.

After scanning the ocean below for what seemed to him like days he spotted a dark shape several miles ahead and to the left, surrounded by a fringe of white surf. Without a second thought he turned the XL towards it and less than a minute later came to a soft if hurried landing on the narrow beach of a deserted atoll. Almost before the craft had settled he leapt out of the cockpit and reached into the back, pulling Cindy out and laying her gently on the black sand. As he did so he couldn't help noticing that her hands and arms were like ice, and that she didn't seem to be breathing. He recalled his procedures for CPR and prepared to administer artificial resuscitation, but as he tilted her head back she stirred and blearily opened her eyes. After blinking a few times at his astonished face, she managed to get out a few slurred words.

"Why is it so cold?" she asked.

There were a thousand things Jimmy wanted to say, but all he could get out was "Cindy? You're all right?"

"Just cold. And a small headache." She looked around, trying to place her surroundings. "Where are we?"

"On an atoll a few hundred miles west of the International Date Line," Jimmy replied as he helped Cindy to sit up. "Take it easy. You've been through a lot."

The events of the past hour came back to her. "Is the meteor – "

"Gone. We did it." As Cindy shivered and rubbed her arms to stimulate the circulation Jimmy cursed himself for not having the foresight to bring a blanket along. Fortunately, however, the air was warm and it did not take long for the last rays of the setting sun to fully revive Cindy. Once both of them were sufficiently warmed up they boarded the Strato XL for the trip home. Despite her recent ordeal Cindy half-wished that they could stay and enjoy the tropical sunset, but it was midnight or later back in Retroville and she knew that they had to get back. Reluctantly she settled back into her seat and bid farewell to the small island with a mental note to someday visit the tropics again.

The trip back was strangely uncomfortable. Jimmy seemed relieved enough that she was all right and that the meteor was no longer a threat, but Cindy knew that somehow things between them had changed. Unsure what to do she said, "Uh, Jimmy?"

"Yes?"

"Umm…you know that the Retroville Days Dance is coming up, and I was wondering…" She paused to get a reading on Jimmy's reaction and failed. "Well, would you…do you want to go with me?"

Jimmy sounded almost embarrassed. "Thanks, Cindy, but I don't think I can. I mean…I have things to do."

"Things," Cindy repeated tonelessly.

"Yeah. You know, maintenance in the lab, some equations I've been meaning to get to…stuff like that. You know."

Cindy hated lies and detested bad ones. "Things."

"Yeah. You know. Things."

"Things that can't wait or be rescheduled?"

"No. I mean, yes. I mean…" Jimmy floundered for the right words. "It's complicated."

There was a short silence as Cindy fought to keep her voice and emotions under control before speaking. When she did speak her voice was as cold as she had felt a short while ago. "All right, Neutron. Out with it."

"Out with what?"

"What's going on? Why are you avoiding going to the dance with me?"

"I'm not. I really have –"

"Answer me!"

From behind Cindy could see Jimmy's shoulders slump and heard him heave a sigh. "It's not going to work, Cindy," he said.

Cindy's anger gave way to bewilderment. "What? What do you mean, 'It's not going to work?' Everything turned out all right, didn't it?"

"Don't you get it?" Jimmy's voice reflected the anguish that Cindy couldn't see on his face. "The only reason we got together at all was because I wasn't me. I wanted to impress someone enough that they'd like me for who I was, but the only way for that to happen was to be someone else. And in one day I nearly got you killed and almost let Retroville and maybe most the inhabited world be destroyed because of that."

"Hey, you didn't point that meteor at Retroville," Cindy protested angrily. "And you didn't decide to have me come along. All you did was do what had to be done."

"I know," Jimmy answered in a suddenly quiet tone. "It's who I have to be. I forgot and tried to change that and things almost got out of hand."

"But it doesn't have to be that way!" Cindy argued.

Jimmy shook his head. "It's a risk I can't afford to take. I'm sorry."

Cindy took a moment to steady herself and when she spoke there was a bitter edge to her voice. "I guess I forgot, too, Jimmy. I forgot that you'll go through space and time and even other dimensions to risk everything you have to make sure the world is safe for another day. I forgot you'd take any risk to see that things always work out right." She had to stop before going on. "Except the one risk that really matters. You can't risk finding out whether you really mean something to someone, because it would mean admitting that maybe they meant something to you."

If Jimmy heard Cindy's words he gave no sign that he had. They made the rest of in silence with Jimmy landing the Strato XL in the launch silo beneath his clubhouse when they arrived. The two climbed out of the rocket, carefully avoiding each other's gaze, and Cindy silently made her way towards the exit while Jimmy puttered about with unnecessary make-work. Before leaving Cindy half-turned and paused, and Jimmy waited to see what it was that she planned to do.

"Just a word of advice for the future, Neutron," she said, very quietly. "Girls aren't all that impressed by guys trying to impress them. Sincerity generally goes a lot further." Then she left, leaving Jimmy silent and alone in his lab.

End of Part 16