Protection

C/By Kenjaje

Chapter 3: Hydration

The sedentary ship thundered on the ground as Gantu pounded into the hull with a mixture of urgency and fear. 625 scurried into the room immediately, and was about to say something of an insulting nature when Gantu cut him off. 625 scowled, and followed the giant into the control room.

"Computer, open communication link to Dr. Hamsterveil." He ordered.

"Communication established." It replied calmly in monotone. The feed crackled as it cleared and revealed Hamsterveil diligently ticking away at a keyboard.

"Dr. Hamsterveil." Gantu spoke a bit above casual decibels. The rodent seemed to turn around in half surprise. "626 is-"

"I know." He replied with fatigue. "626 is no longer under our control." The doctor seemed slightly out of it, his eyes were bloodshot and fighting to stay open, and his face proclaimed that his mind was wandering in and out of the hazy realm of sleep.

"How can this be though?" Gantu asked, not lightning his tone. "I thought project AK was flawless at this point." The rodent on the screen gave out a sigh.

"That is what angers me." He said, resting a cheek on his paw. He seemed more tired than angry. "I still don't understand how 626 is able to revert back to normal or why."

"Well, I can't answer that, but it appears as though we have another problem on our hands." Dr. Hamsterveil widened his gaze a fraction, then let his eyelids droop down to normal.

"What would that be?" He spoke almost as if he was bored of the whole subject.

"It appears that Jumba has not only acquired knowledge of our project, but has also manufactured the basic form of the project." This time Hamsterveil's eyes didn't droop back down to normal.

"No...no that is impossible..." He slammed a fist down at the keyboard; static shimmered through the monitor in reaction. "If he manages to comprehend the full extend of the AK project then we have no choice but to abort it."

"Understood, sir." Gantu replied. "May I suggest an assault or incursion of the house to destroy all of their acquired technology?" Hamsterveil rubbed a hand against his fuzzy chin, pondering the suggestion.

"No." He responded dryly. "It would be too soon. We must lay low...give them something to do...perhaps another experiment to capture, that should occupy them for long enough, maybe even two or three. Didn't you say that you caught one over the earth's dark cycle?"

"Yes. As a matter of fact I have it right here." Gantu extended a pod which he had salvaged from his pocket and displayed it number-side up for the rodent to examine.

"Good." He said, his posture returning to normal. "Find it's abilities and let it loose on the island, I don't care what it does, but make sure that you don't interfere with it. If those two see you, then our cover is blown."

"Understood, sir. Gantu signing out." Without a word from the other end, the feed was cut, and static again consumed the screen.

"Connection terminated." The computer's voice chimed in. Gantu tossed the experiment once into the air, and walked toward the original containment orb wherein used to be all six hundred and twenty five pods. He examined the number on the pod. "Hm...599..." He keyed the number into the computer and it displayed all the available data. Gantu was quite pleased with its capabilities. "This will most definitely keep those two out of our hair for a good long time..." He spoke, as he immediately went to the facilities to execute its activiation.

"It's going to take me forever to get used to this..." Stitch (or rather Lilo) said, as he examined his claws against the ceiling of their room. Lilo, (or rather Stitch) paid only a fraction of her attention, for she was busy brushing her hair. It wasn't even noon yet, and already they'd been twisted by fate.

"Gaba ju tasha?" Lilo asked, still running the comb through her hair as if it was the greatest thing in the world.

"What do you mean, what do I mean?" Stitch exclaimed, not lifting his head. "I'm in your body, and you're in mine!" His voice began to rise with frustration. "I've got fur, I've got claws, I've got long ears, and a tail—I'm not supposed to have a tail!"

"Eda...goobachaka?" Lilo again questioned, still half paying attention.

"No...it's not a problem. I mean...it would be better if I knew beforehand this was going to happen to us. At least then I'd-"He paused and abruptly opened his mouth wide, ejecting mucus through the nasal passages in the back of his throat and swallowing them with a nauseating groan. "...That...was the most amount of snot I have ever..." Stitch sat up while he spoke, and looked over at Lilo, who still brushed her hair. "What are you doing?" He asked, pointing out that Stitch (as Lilo) was taking a liking to such a girlish action.

"Uh..." Lilo said nervously, stopping her action immediately and looking at the brush in her hand, then darting her eyes at Stitch, and back at the brush. "Nagaba." She said with a smile, trying to hind the brush behind her back. Stitch rolled his eyes and laid back down to look at the ceiling.

"I wish I could cope with this as well as you are." He grumbled. Lilo felt a bit sympathetic, laid the brush down, and calmly walked over and sat on the bed.

"Is strange for Stitch as well..." She confessed, thought it sounded odd, as it was Stitch talking to Lilo in his body using her voice. It just felt...eerie. "But," She continued, extending a hand to scratch Stitch's head. "Jumba will find way to fix us." Stitch closed his eyes and winced relaxingly at the petting gesture. Stitch, as Lilo, knew exactly where to pet, and when to pet it, and this spot above his nose was where he liked it when he was feeling stressed.

"Yeah...I guess you're right." Stitch replied, his voice now less frantic. "Ok..." Stitch spoke as if he'd just realized something was disturbing. "I'm drawing the line at this," he backed away, "me petting myself on the head is just too weird!" Lilo looked off to the side, and then dropped her arm. "I hope Jumba can cure us...and soon." As if on cue, up came Jumba from the elevator and out he stepped into the top floor of the tower, with two pairs of eyes staring eagerly for his report. He flinched, not exactly expecting such an expectant welcome from the two, but then cleared his throat.

"Little girl," he said to Stitch, "626," he turned to Lilo. "Am having good news...and am having bad news..." He paused, waiting for a rhetorical gesture from one of them, but there was none, so he was forced to continue. "I have determined that the cause of your switching of bodies was indeed, due to this." He displayed the small pistol-like device Pleakley had threatened to use against Gantu not ten minutes ago. "This was an experimental project I was working on, which was used before it should have been—used on the two of you.

"Apparently, there is an unknown variable in the laser that caused the switching of two bodies." He spoke explanatorily, but soon after he paused and a dour look dawned his face.

"And...the bad news?" Stitch asked, though not wanting to.

"Bad news being...I have no cure, and know way of knowing if this transformation is being permanent or not. There is chance it is, there is chance it isn't. But...I assure you I will not rest until I have found out a way to cure you both." He said optimistically, trying to cheer up the frowns that crossed the faces of the two-switched persons before him. "Am...being sorry." He apologized, hoping that that would make them feel a bit better, at the least.

"Oketaka." Lilo replied, lifting her head up.

"Until you do," Stitch chimed in, "we'll do our best to deal with it." A meek smile crossed them all as they tried to lift each other's spirits, and Jumba left the room to get to work immediately. Lilo and Stitch both let out a sigh and looked at each other. "We'll have to make do." He said.

"Eh." She replied.

"Now that I have freed you from your pod, I ask that you do a favor for me. I only hydrated you so that you could do one thing: distract two people for me. They live in a house not far from here, I want you to do what your programming tells you to do. They'll try to convert you, but don't listen to them. Also, you are not to start your real progress until later on today, they will be suspicious if you reveal yourself too soon."

Gantu's words echoed once again through the mind of 599. The experiment reviewed, and re-reviewed the orders given, and applied them. Under the guise of a cloud-one of this particular experiment's many abilities-599 hovered over the island, careful to make sure that the black bottoms of the cumulonimbus's, ready to burst with rain at any moment, kept above its body to shield it from the sun.