Kim Possible and all related characters and indicia are owned by the Disney Corporation. Supergirl and all related characters and indicia are owned by DC Comics. Adam is the creation of Triaxx2. This work of fan fiction is written for pleasure, not profit.
WWLAOS: Patience is a virtue that will be rewarded next chapter :).
Triaxx2: Your comment has given me an idea!
Ron sat on a crate in the warehouse, his head in his hands. He was fretting, something he sometimes did when confronted with circumstances over which he had no control. He wasn't especially worried, at least not about Kim's immediate safety. Monty Fiske was insane, to be sure, but the real focus of his madness was on Ron. Still, the more time went by the more likely it was that Fiske would do something...
No.
Ron forced those thoughts from his head. 'Don't borrow trouble,' he told himself.
Looking up, he saw Black Canary talking with two of the Long Beach police officers who'd arrived to take Monkey Fist's goons into custody. He couldn't hear what she was saying, and since she was facing away from him, Ron didn't know what her expression was, but it was clear she was in the process of wrapping the two men around her little finger.
"How you holding up?" Green Arrow asked quietly. Ron glanced over his shoulder. Arrow was leaning against a nearby pillar.
"Well enough, I guess," Ron shrugged. "How much longer until she gets here?"
It was Green Arrow's turn to shrug. "Beetle said she'd head here as soon as she finished the case she was on, so who knows? It could be..." Arrow paused. Ron felt a surge of static electricity. "...now." Arrow grinned. Blue-white light flared and condensed into the familiar form of Zatanna Zatarra. To Ron's surprise, a second flash of light preceded the appearance of the young mage called Adam.
"Babysitting again, Zee?" Arrow jibed. Zatanna gave him a harried smile, while Adam glared.
"Dr. Fate decided he's ready for a little field experience," Zatanna shrugged. She turned to Ron. "Why don't you tell us exactly what happened?" she prompted with a sympathetic smile.
Ron began recounting the events of the evening. "...then, just as we were about to rush him, he pulled off his mask. It was Monkey Fist."
"Monkey Fist?" Adam interjected. "I thought he was dead?"
"He should be," Ron agreed sourly. "After all, I killed him myself." Ron's face darkened and he scowled. "I guess he didn't stay dead though."
"Go on, Ron," Zatanna urged.
"Well, he tossed this at us," Ron said, holding up a small silvery ball. "There was a flash and everyone except MF fell down. He grabbed Kim, then took something out of that crate over there," Ron said, pointing. "A portal made of the same light we saw in Germany opened up behind him, he stepped through it with Kim, and poof! he was gone."
Zatanna nodded silently. "May I?" she asked, reaching out and taking the ball from Ron. While he watched curiously she gave it what seemed to be no more than a casual glance. Then she tossed it to Adam who, though initially surprised, managed to catch it gracefully.
"What can you tell us about that?" Zatanna asked.
The young mage turned the ball over and over in his fingers, peering intently at what to Ron's eye was a featureless surface. Then, in a gesture Ron found so odd it bordered on bizarre, Adam raised the sphere to his nose and sniffed it. Ron's eyes flicked to Zatanna, who was watching calmly. She didn't seem to think anything was amiss, so Ron didn't say anything. After a few more moments Adam held the sphere out to Zatanna.
"The ball," Adam began, "is hollow and made of pure silver. It was recently enchanted with a simple paralysis spell that was set to be triggered when the sphere hit something solid."
Ron blinked. "You mean it has an impact fuse?" he demanded, not really sure why he sounded surprised.
"In a manner of speaking," Adam confirmed.
"Great!" Ron groused. "Not only is Monkey Fist not dead anymore, but now he's got magical powers, too!"
Zatanna shook her head. "Not necessarily, Ron," she corrected. "This thing was made so anyone could use it, even someone with no magical skills at all."
"Besides," Adam added, "If your monkey friend could have enchanted this, it would have been easier for him to just cast the spell."
"Same goes for the portal too, I suppose?" Ron asked glumly.
"Let me see what I can find out," Zatanna suggested. She moved the spot Ron indicated and said something in her peculiar magic language. Ron thought he saw a few flickers of red, but he wasn't sure.
"Not much there, I'm afraid," Zatanna reported. "Which pretty much confirms what I suspected."
"Which is...?" Ron prompted.
"That the portal's point of origin was somewhere other than here."
"So what was the thing Monkey Fist picked up?" Green Arrow asked. "I couldn't make our what he said right after, but it sounded like it rhymed."
"Who knows?" Zatanna shrugged helplessly. "If you want me to guess I'll say it was what we call a guide stone, a minor artifact that can be used to do what Monkey Fist did."
"By anyone, suppose?" Green Arrow said acidly.
"I'm afraid so."
Green Arrow turned away, muttering under his breath. Ron couldn't help but empathize. He was frustrated too.
"Gah!" Ron exclaimed. "We're wasting time discussing means when we should be focused on ends! I want to know where Monkey Fist took her!" He almost shouted the last. Black Canary, who had slipped away from the police and rejoined the group, sat down next to him and slipped an arm around his waist.
"I understand, Ron," she soothed gently. "But speculating on the basis of very little evidence isn't going to do us any good."
Ron seemed to deflate, sagging into a slouch and staring down at the floor.
Canary looked up at Zatanna. "So, Monkey Fist has a wizard for an ally, one who gives him magical toys, and who probably also restored him to life. How many evil wizards are there who are powerful enough to do something like that?"
Zatanna snorted. "Dozens."
"Like who? Name some names."
"Oh, let's see," Zatanna mused, and began ticking off the items on her fingers. "...Mordru, Morgaine le Fey, Circ-"
"Felix Faust," a grim new voice broke in.
Ron's head snapped up. "Supergirl!" he exclaimed, springing to his feet at the sight of the blue eyed blonde and her red, white and blue uniform. He started forward. Kara met him half way, clutching him in a fierce embrace as his arms went around her.
"It's good to see you," Ron murmured, pressing his face into Kara's silky hair.
"I just wish I'd been here earlier," Kara apologized, "but..."
"Never mind that," Ron reproved softly. "Metropolis needed you and-" He stopped abruptly, drew back, and pushed Kara out to arms length.
"What happened to your face!" he demanded suddenly, staring in disbelief at the yellowing bruise that surrounded Kara's right eye.
"A guy called the Atomic Skull," Kara answered. Seeing the look of concern on Ron's face she went on, "Relax, Ron. It's a lot better than it was fifteen minutes ago, and I'll bet it'll be gone in half an hour." He stared at her blankly. "I'm a fast healer," she clarified.
"Never mind that either," Zatanna cut in, mimicking Ron's earlier words. "What's this about Felix Faust?" she demanded.
"To summarize?" Kara asked seriously. "Faust hired an outfit called Skull to go after me specifically. They staged a fake smuggling job to flush me out, then turned the Atomic Skull loose on me when I showed up."
"Never heard of anyone called the Atomic Skull," Green Arrow observed.
"That's because Skull cooked him up especially for the occasion. With, I might add, some help from an expert Faust put them in touch with." Kara paused theatrically and shot Ron a knowing glance. "DNAmy."
"The rogue geneticist?" Black Canary asked, a touch skeptically. "What makes her involvement so important?"
Ron had his eyes squeezed shut and was pressing the palms of his hands against his temples. He seemed to be highly agitated and deep in thought at the same time. He moved erratically, turning this way and that, snapping his fingers and pointing at nothing in the same gesture.
Suddenly he straightened up.
"It's like this," he began. "DNAmy was, is, sweet on Monkey Fist. She was always a whack job, but she really lost it after he...died."
Kara nodded in agreement and spoke up. "There was an inquest into the shooting, afterward, to make sure Ron was justified in using deadly force," she explained. "DNAmy showed up, hysterical, and swore she'd make Ron pay for what he did."
"She could have made Monkey Fist a new body," Ron suggested forcefully.
"And Felix Faust could have restored Fiske's spirit to it," Zatanna agreed. "But when? These monkey crimes only started a month or so ago, right after your first visit to the...Watch...tower..." Zatanna's voice faltered, her eyes going wide.
"Zee? Zee, what is it?" Kara asked sharply.
"The Watchtower! Ron's seizure!" Zatanna said excitedly. "That was Faust performing the ritual." She was silent again for a moment while the others just stared in disbelief, or confusion. Then she stuck a hand out in front of her, palm up, fingers spread.
"!won etaF rotcoD em teG" the raven haired magician barked. Colors swirled above her hand, solidifying into an image of a dimly lit room. A bedroom. With an occupied bed. Whose occupants weren't sleeping. There was a shriek, more of surprise than fear, from the woman. The man turned around, starting at whatever it was he saw.
"Zatanna, I told you not to do that except in an emergency," the man said angrily.
"Which is what this is," Zatanna snapped back. "We think Felix Faust brought Monkey Fist back from the dead," she added, telling the man what little else they knew. The man and the woman shared a look. She nodded in understanding.
"I'll be right there," the man assured Zatanna. Bright light flared in the image Zatanna was projecting. A similar light appeared behind them. Ron turned in time to see a huge ankh fade away to reveal the blue and gold clad form of Dr. Fate.
The next little while (or was it hours?) passed in a swirl of jumbled images. Ron felt utterly helpless. He was a trained Global Justice field operative with years of experience under his belt, and here he was, sitting idly by while some of the most powerful people on Earth tried to solve his problem for him.
Ron chuckled bitterly. No, that wasn't entirely true. Or was 'fair' the word he was looking for? Green Arrow was just a regular guy, after all. Without his gadgets, all he had to bring to the table were smarts and courage. Which, Ron had to admit, were really the most important things in a hero's arsenal. And there was Kara, of course. Knowing nothing about magic, she could only sit beside Ron, a comforting arm around his shoulders, while Fate and Zatanna argued about the proper course of action. Black Canary was with them, mostly listening, but weighing in with a question or an observation every now and then.
"That is some woman," Ron mused aloud, after Canary asked a question that seemed to surprise Dr. Fate.
"How so?" Kara asked him, her tone playfully offended.
"She's drop-dead gorgeous, disarmingly down-to-earth, and smart as a whip," Ron explained. "Kind of reminds me of someone else I know," he added, winking at Kara.
"Flatterer," she accused haughtily, but smiling none-the-less. Kara's own expression grew sly.
"You shouldn't talk about Green Arrow's girlfriend like that when he's within earshot," she said in a stage whisper.
If Kara was expecting an embarrassed or angry reaction, Ron noted, she didn't get it. Green Arrow just laughed.
"Nice try, Kid," he mocked. "I don't mind other guys looking," he added, nodding at Ron, "'cause I know she's going home with me at the end of the day."
While Kara and Green Arrow exchanged playful banter, Ron regarded the other person present. The mage named Adam was standing with Fate and Zatanna, but talking even less than Black Canary was. Ron felt a pang of sympathy. From the expression on Adam's face, it was clear he felt as much like a fifth wheel as Ron did. On impulse, Ron stood up and crossed to where the young man stood.
"Let's take a walk," Ron suggested. Adam's brow furrowed in curiosity, but he followed as Ron moved away from the two League magicians.
"You understand any of that?" Ron inquired, jerking his head at Fate and Zatanna.
"Oh, yeah," Adam said confidently. Ron gave him a skeptical look. "Well, some of it, anyhow," Adam amended. He glanced over at the two Leaguers. "Right now Zatanna is trying to convince Dr. Fate that...uh...oh, hell. I don't understand any of it," Adam admitted.
"Aren't you a wizard too?" Ron asked.
"Mage," Adam corrected. "A self-taught mage at that. I don't understand Zatanna's form of magic at all, and Dr. Fate is so far above me, skill-wise, that..." The young man let the rest of the sentence hang.
Ron grinned. "Welcome to the club," he joked, holding out his hand. "I'm Ron Stoppable."
"Adam Marcae," the youngster replied, shaking Ron's hand and grinning as well.
Before Ron could say anything else, his Kimmunicator beeped, demanding his attention.
"What up, Wade?" he asked, trying to sound cheerful. Wade hadn't been idle since Kim had been kidnapped. He'd been trying to locate her via her own Kimmunicator, and apparently he'd had some luck. At least, Ron hoped he had.
"I found Kim!" Wade said triumphantly, and Ron felt his spirits soar. "Well," Wade amended, "At least I found her Kimmunicator." Ron nodded, and noted that Kara was suddenly looking over his shoulder. He was pretty sure she hadn't been there a second ago.
"Super speed?" Ron asked lightly, giving Kara a teasing glance.
"Super hearing too," Kara answered with a smug smile, even as she threaded an arm around Ron's waist.
"Where is she, Wade?" Ron asked, looking at the screen again.
"Louisiana," Wade informed him. "About forty miles northwest of New Orleans." The small screen split as Wade's image went to picture-in-picture mode. The main image switched to a map of the state, with crosshairs marking Kim's location.
"I'm worried though," Wade said, his expression darkening. Ron felt a tremor of unease run through him.
"I've been trying to get remote access for like, half an hour, with no luck," Wade explained. Then, about a minute ago, the homing beacon switched on. No voice communications, no nothing, just the beacon."
Ron and Kara shared a look. That was odd, and a little frightening.
Before Ron could elaborate on his fears, a Justice League comm-link chimed. Ron's head snapped around. Dr. Fate pulled a small device from his belt and spoke into it.
"Yes?" Faintly Ron heard the voice of Blue Beetle.
"We got a call from Louisiana," Ron heard Beetle say, "Something weird going on north of New Orleans." Everyone crowded around Fate. The screen on his comm was even smaller than the Kimmunicator's but the image it showed was just as clear. It was a high angle (probably satellite) view of a swampy forest. Smack dab in the middle of the screen was a dome of red-gold light.
"Monkey Fist," Ron grated.
The dome of light covered a sprawling Ante-bellum mansion and its grounds. It was also quite impenetrable. Kara had pounded on it until her knuckles bled, to no avail. Doctor Fate and Zatanna had tried every spell they could think of with no success.
Ron's spirits had sunk again. He sat on the ground in a funk, listening to Green Arrow vent his own frustration.
"There has to be a way in," Arrow said angrily. "I mean, we had no idea where they even were until they showed us. They must want us to get in. It can't be impossible."
'That makes a certain amount of sense,' Ron agreed silently. 'Now all we have to do is find out...' Ron's train of thought slid to a halt. Adam was leaning against the dome. As Ron watched the mage stared intently at the barrier. Then he sniffed it. Then, to Ron's shock, Adam reached out with his tongue and licked it.
"What the heck are you doing?" Ron demanded sharply.
"Trying to find out what this dome thing is," Adam explained nonchalantly.
"By tasting it?" Ron mocked.
"Yeah," Adam shot back. "Some people use spells to analyze mystic energy. I use my five senses. Some of it I can see, some I can hear, and some..."
"...you can taste?" Ron finished incredulously.
"And what have you discovered?" Dr. Fate asked, startling Ron.
"That this field is composed of two kinds of energy," Adam answered. "One is your ordinary, run-of-the-mill negative energy. The other is the same stuff that's running through Ron."
Ron could almost see Fate blink. A golden gloved hand settled on Ron's forehead, while its opposite number brushed the shield.
"The two are similar, I admit," Fate said slowly, "but their textural properties..."
"That difference is because Ron is a living being, and this stuff is being channeled through an artifact," Adam said confidently, gesturing between Ron and the shield. "I'm sure of it."
Fate seemed skeptical, but said, "Then perhaps Mr. Stoppable is the key." He turned his helmeted gaze to Ron.
"Me?" Ron asked in disbelief.
"Monkey Fist wants revenge on you," Fate pointed out. "He set clues for you to follow, and kidnapped your friend. Perhaps he arranged things so only you could enter in here."
"It's worth a shot, Kid," Green Arrow chimed in. "What have you got to lose?"
An excellent point, Ron had to admit. He'd never be able to live with himself if something happened to Kim and it had been in his power to prevent it. Hesitantly, Ron approached the dome. Brushing it with his fingertips he felt an electric thrill run up his arm. He pushed, ever so lightly. His hand sank effortlessly into the shield. He drew it back, then plunged his arm in to the shoulder. Same thing. Ron pulled back and stared at his arm in wonder.
"I can do it!" Ron whispered. On impulse he ran at the dome. He passed completely through it, then turned around and came back.
"I can do it!" Ron shouted triumphantly. Kara gave him a congratulatory hug, then looked at Fate.
"Maybe Ron can take us all through?" she suggested.
"Not likely," a cold, flat voice said from behind them. Ron started, then looked to see Batman emerging from the shadows beneath some nearby trees.
"Would you stop doing that?" Ron asked plaintively.
"And what do you mean, not likely?" Kara added sharply. Batman pointed, and Ron looked over his shoulder. His backpack had been sheared away, as cleanly as with a knife. Only the inch or so of it closest to his body remained.
"You'll have to go in alone, find what's generating this, and disable it," Batman said. "Think you can manage that?"
"By myself?" Ron squeaked. "I'm not even a match for Monkey-boy anymore, let alone an arch-mage. Even with the Lotus Blade..." Ron stopped, clapping his hand over his mouth.
"Summon it," Fate commanded. While Kara and the others looked on curiously, Ron held up his hand. Mere moments later the hilt of the jade green sword slapped into his palm.
"Wow!" was all Kara had to say.
"That should even the odds," Fate said encouragingly.
"I hope it's enough," Ron muttered.
"In case it isn't," Batman cut in, "I have an idea."