After Kim had woken Ron, Scorpius continued.
"Forgive me, but I must ask a favor of you." Kim looked suspiciously at him.
"I don't know…"
"There is a danger that you will have brought dangerous illnesses on board the command carrier—or we may possess illnesses dangerous to you—would you mind a medical checkup? You are our guests, after all." Kim nodded, reluctantly, and they were quickly ushered off to a medical facility where instruments her mom would have sold her right arm for were used, including one device that inserted a probe into Kim's ear.
"OOH, That is so wrong!" Ron said.
"Your turn." Kim said, shaking her head.
"No need—this test only had to be performed on one of you." Scorpius provided. "I've taken the liberty of having clothes in your size provided in the dressing rooms, while we wash your clothes and sterilize your belongings."
"Thanks!...I think." Kim said, as she and Ron walked into the changing room. There, alone, they looked at the two peacekeeper uniforms.
"KP…that guy is really weird—he's like my dad, if my dad wore leather…"
"So not the image, Ron." Kim said, "We're in an alien world, maybe that's what everyone wears?"
"Then why is he the only one who wears it-" Ron broke off and turned red. " Uh? KP…there's just one room."
"So?"
"They want us to-"
"Oh."
Outside, Scorpius looked surprised as Ron exited, holding his clothes.
"Excuse me Scorp old buddy, do you have another room?"
"Why?"
"Well, Kim's like a girl and well…" Ron said, trying to loosen his collar.
"A nudity taboo…how charming." Scorpius paused, "Here you are." He said, opening another door.
. Scorpius shook his head and then turned to the medical tech who had approached him.
"Is it done?"
"Yes sir. You saw the insertion, and the analysis indicates it is fully operational."
"Excellent. Prepare their belongings."
A few moments later, Kim found herself, along with Ron, in a large office type room. Scorpius entered with them, nodding at Braca, who left them alone. Without saying anything, he crossed to the desk and touched a stud, bringing up a holographic display.
"The Command Carrier." It took Kim a moment to get the scale of the ship revealed in the sphere. If the little ships were fighters…
"It's almost a mile long!" She gasped.
"True—they are the primary warship of the Peacekeeper navy." Scorpius paused, and sat down.
"Peacekeepers… like the police?" Ron asked.
"Precisely—we maintain the peace in this region of the galaxy, preventing hostile forces from dominating less powerful groups." Kim put her hand to her forehead.
"And I beat the police up. Good going Possible. I'm sorry-" She started, but Scorpius forestalled her with a gesture.
"It was understandable, given your situation…and this situation may be of benefit to both of us."
"How? We're lost, in an alien galaxy…and…and… there is no Bueno Taco For miles, strike that… years!" Ron said, almost fainting again as the true degree of his personal nightmare became clear.
"And you are not the first terrans to arrive here." Scorpius continued, and touched another button. The vast command carrier vanished, to be replaced by a very ordinary looking man.
"John Crichton…" Kim gasped.
"Ron, wasn't he an astronaut—he was lost in space!" Ron nodded,
"Yeah, KP, your dad was bummed over it for weeks."
"Not lost…just forced through a wormhole," Scorpius brought up an image of a swirling vortex in space. "And these wormholes may very well hold to key to your return… and the salvation of our people."
"Salvation?" Kim asked. "You seem to have… well this!" She finished, gesturing at the command carrier around them.
"Yes." Scorpius gave a humorless smile, "But even the largest warship can be defeated, if the other side has more, and larger." Rufus gave a squeak and dove into Ron's pocket as a hideous, lizard like creature appeared.
"Behold the Scarrens." Scorpius said, "A powerful, ruthless species with a vast empire—and I am afraid, more ships and soldiers then we have. We have held them at bay for now, but without wormhole technology to move our ships, I fear that we will fall before them…as will earth, should they reach it." He paused, "John Crichton holds the key to our survival and your return home."
"I'll find him!" Kim offered, "At home, that's what I do."
"Yeah, KP can do anything!"
"Excellent…" Scorpius said, "But this is not simply a case of looking for him… when he arrived here, he fell in with a group of escaped convicts who lied to him and convinced him they were actually freedom fighters." A series of images appeared.
"Ka Dargo, a war criminal and ruthless general, and far worse." The image of a tall alien, with tentacles coming out of the back of his head, holding a sword like weapon, exuded menace.
"Eugh." Ron said, "Looks like the brain eater from Beyond Galactic Core VII."
"Rygel the 16th, a being known for his willingness to sacrifice millions of his subjects—before they overthrew him, including a member of his own family." A tiny, squat green creature with sparse white hair, sitting in some sort of flying chair, his expression showing smug contempt. Kim shuddered.
"Gross." She said. Scorpius changed the picture again, and a woman appeared, her hard face a twin to the weapon she held in her hand.
"Aeryn Sun…a Peacekeeper deserter, I am sorry to say, but very skilled with weapons." The picture changed again, and now it was a shorter woman with white hair and gray skin crouched and looking very suspicious.
"Chiana—a thief and possibly murderer…"
"Boo-ya! cute alien space babe alert!" Ron interrupted.
"Ron! pay attention." Kim glared at her friend. Finally, there was a picture of a truly alien being, seemingly locked into a control panel. It had more than two arms, and looked annoyed, concentrating on the panels before it.
"And last but not least, Pilot—a being who may or may not actually have been coerced into working with them, as he is connected symbiotically to the prison ship that they stole, a leviathan named Moya.." Scorpius paused, "I fear that at some point John Crichton will lose his value to them…and all our attempts to recover him have proven fruitless. You say, "You can do anything", Ms. Possible…and I am willing to take you at your word. I wish to hire you to locate the Leviathan and these criminals, to save your astronaut and secure for the Peacekeepers the secrets of wormhole technology before it falls into the wrong hands." Scorpius smiled, "In return, I swear that our first use of the technology will to be return you and yours to earth, to bring this "Dr. Drakken" to justice, and to also place a defensive cordon around your world to protect it from any further threats, as will befit an ally of the Peacekeepers and Sebacean race. Also, I swear that neither you, your companion, nor your families will ever have to work again, unless you desire to."
"Boo ya!" Ron said.
"Indeed." Scorpius said, smiling.
"How can I find him?" Kim said,
"I will provide a marauder fighter craft for your use—in fact, from your reflexes, I would say you have the potential to be an excellent pilot. I will also give you the last known location of Moya, and full information on any possible future destinations." Scorpius presented his hand, "Well Ms. Possible? Do we have… a deal?" Kim nodded instantly.
"I'd like to go right now, If you don't mind," She said, "Unless you think I need training to fly the ship?"
"Not at all—the controls have been set for earth standard displays…and I think you'll find them quite intuitive." Kim nodded at that.
"C'mon Ron—we have to get ready."
"Did you hear that Kim? 'never work again'! Grandie Size Naco's, here I come!" As they left, Scorpius heard his aide move up beside him.
"Doubts, Lieutenant Braca?"
"Many, Sir. She is an immature specimen of a primitive species—her slogan notwithstanding, she can't do everything, especially in the Uncharted Regions. She'll be lucky to survive her first planet fall—to say nothing of long enough to even begin to track John Crichton down—and I don't think she'll be able to succeed in capturing him where so many others have failed."
"You are quite correct, Braca." Scorpius said, and then touched a stud on his desk. "Have you finished?"
"Yes sir," A technicians voice came, "The tracking beacon has been placed both in the ship and in her possessions."
"And it is not detectable?"
"No sir—it works on an intermittent transmission system, until ordered otherwise. I'd stake my life on it."
"Quite possibly, you are." He answered, and turned back to Braca. "The first planet on the list we compiled is in the last area Moya was located—I'm certain they are still in range of the planetary datanets, and will no doubt hear of our…associates."
"Sir…why?"
"You are correct, Braca, she is unlikely to find our quarry, but John Crichton hates me—and believes only ill of me. What do you think he will do when he hears of a fifteen year old, obviously brainwashed or confused, working for," Scorpius gave a slight laugh, "the devil?" Braca smiled at the idea and then nodded.
"He'll come for her—to rescue her."
"Correct… Kim Possible cannot find him, so I have arranged it so that John Crichton will find her…"
"And your agreement with her?"
"I see no reason to stand on legalisms—she will have aided us, and so I will give her everything I promised." Scorpius turned away from Braca, "Braca, order the Carrier to full stealth mode, our escorts as well. It would not do to be too far away to join in the reunion."
"Of course sir."
To be continued.
