Chapter 18
"What? No! It's too dangerous! Come back to the ship!" said Kim.
"Sorry, can't do that. But don't worry. I'll blow this thing into a billion pieces, and be back for dinner," she said.
Over the comlink they heard Wade's keyboard click.
"Shego, if your glow isn't strong enough, the tunnel will collapse with you in it," said Wade.
"Then let's hope it's strong enough," she replied.
"Don't do this!" pleaded Kim.
"Really, Kim, we don't have a choice, now," answered Shego.
"But you could die!" said Kim, desperation plain in her voice.
Shego snorted. "Die now, as opposed to in a few days when the intact asteroid hits the earth, or in a few months anyway? Sorry, Kimmie, but I've been given the chance to meet my fate head on, and on my terms. I'm taking it."
"Shego, you still work for me. Get out of there now!" said Kim.
"I guess I have to break the contract, then," replied Shego.
"Mom, Dad, talk her out of this!" Kim said, turning to her parents.
The Doctors Possible looked unhappy. "Sorry, Kimmie-cub, but she's right. This is the world's last chance," said Mr. Possible.
"I agree with your father and Shego, Kim," said Mrs. Possible, "But I don't like it any more than you do."
"Ron!" said Kim, turning to her best friend.
"Uh... Kim... she's right," said Ron, with his face red and a somber expression.
Suddenly Kim's face hardened. "At least help me get my suit back on, so I can go help her."
"Wouldn't advise that, Kim," came Shego's voice, "I figured you would feel like that, so while you were helping Ron, I 'got creative' with your suit. By the time you find and fix what I did, it will be over, one way or the other."
Kim turned and plastered her face against a porthole facing the asteroid. "No..." she wailed.
A green spark appeared on the surface. "Whew! I haven't made my glow appear over my entire body in a long time," said Shego. "Here I go..." The spark disappeared when she jumped into the hole.
"Shego, I promised you wouldn't be alone! I promised!" said Kim, voice quavering.
"I know, Kim, I remember," said Shego, gently, "And I'm not alone. I can hear your voice, and I know you're with me."
Tears appeared in Kim's eyes, and she turned away from the porthole. "Shego..."
Kim started crying in earnest, then, and Ron took her in his arms, trying to comfort her. She clung to him, body shaking, as she got his coverall wet.
"Kim, don't cry. Talk to me. Be with me. I need you," she said.
"O-okay," she said, sniffling, and pulled away from Ron.
"W-what's it like down there?" asked Kim, still holding Ron.
"Can't really see much. The walls are smooth glass that sparkles at times, but nothing else," she replied.
"Shego, I'm still getting readings from your suit," said Mrs. Possible, "I'll monitor for as long as I can and let you know if anything happens."
"Gotcha, thanks, Doc," said Shego.
"Shego, I want you to know that, succeed or fail, what you're doing will not be forgotten," said Mr. Possible.
"I appreciate that," she answered, then said "Thanks, Kim."
"For what?" asked Kim, tears in her eyes.
"For being you. For not hating me. For giving me a chance. For being my friend when I needed one. For showing me that my cynicism about the world is misplaced, and that it is worth saving, at least, as much as we can save," she said.
"No big," said Kim, smiling a sad smile.
"Maybe not to you, but it is to me. I would say I regret all our fights, but I don't, because you gave me a goal, and a reason to train and stay fit. I wish we could have been friends years ago, when I still had time, instead of... now," was the reply.
"Me too," said Kim, sadly.
There was a pause. "Wade, how much farther to the bottom?"
"You're nearly halfway there," he answered.
Kim took a deep breath. "Shego, you're right. This is the only way. I was being selfish, thinking only of myself losing a friend, not the people back home who stand to lose their lives. But I wish it wasn't the only way."
"Me too. But who knows, I might still survive this," said Shego.
"The odds are..." interrupted Wade.
"As a wise man once said," interrupted Shego, "Never tell me the odds."
"Shego, I... I want you to know that I've come to value, no, treasure your friendship. I will never forget the time we had not fighting. Or the time we spent fighting, either. I truely wish things had been different between us. I will never forget you," said Kim.
"Thanks, Kim. I'm glad we're friends now, too. It means a lot to me for you to tell me that. Wade, how much farther?" said Shego.
"Nearly there, about a hundred feet to go," said Wade.
"...I'm down," said Shego.
At the bottom of the shaft, Shego looked up. A lone star could be seen far above, watching her with an unblinking stare. Her green glow reflected off the glassine walls, returning distorted reflections of herself.
"I'm starting now," she said, "Goodbye, everyone. Oh, and Kim, I didn't do anything to your suit. I just wanted to make sure you couldn't stop me."
"WHAT!" came the outraged response.
"My one victory over you. Now let me concentrate," she said.
Her glow became brighter, and she began pushing it against the walls. She could feel the rock resist her efforts, so she heated it up, and the sides nearest her began to melt and become vapor. It seemed to be working.
Aboard the Space Plane, everyone except Mrs. Possible was at the main window watching the asteroid. She was watching the medical readouts.
"Reading an energy spike at the center," Wade reported, "Also an increase in temperature."
As minutes passed, the only sound was Shego's breathing, which became more labored the longer she worked.
"Shego, stop and rest," said Mrs. Possible, "Some of your vitals are nearing critical."
"Can't -pant- stop -pant- now, nearly there," said Shego, "I can tell." She took a deep breath. "Ahhhhaaaaa!" The strain was incredible, but she knew she could do this. She had to back up her boasting.
"Something's happening, can't tell what, just yet," said Wade.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH-*" came from the speakers.
"I just lost her suit," said Mrs. Possible, fingers flying over the keyboard.
"SHEGO!" yelled Kim. "Can you hear me? Shego! Respond!"
There was nothing.
"Ron, help me get into my suit!" Kim shouted, grabbing him by the arm.
"Wait!" said Mr. Possible, "Look at that!"
They looked, but at first, all they saw was the asteroid. Then suddenly, it seemed to expand in all directions at once. Green light welled out of cracks, growing brighter with each passing second. The asteroid continued to expand, the light becoming emerald in color, and brighter as it did so.
"She's still alive, she HAS to be," thought Kim.
Suddenly the green got brighter, and they had to shield their eyes from it. The glow covered the dark mass of rock, hiding it completely. Then it suddenly died.
"Shego!" shouted Kim, to no avail.
"Come on, Ron!" said Kim, and turned to the cargo bay.
"There's no time!" said Wade, "Mr. Possible, you have to get the Plane out of there! Asteroid debris will be where you are in five minutes!"
"I have to save Shego!" protested Kim, as her father dived for the controls.
"You can't," said Wade, "Even if you had time to suit up, her space suit was probably destroyed by her power when her signal was lost. She would be dead of exposure to space long before you could find her."
"No...!" wailed Kim, inconsolable. "I can't fail her! I'm Kim Possible! I can do anything!" She fell into Ron's arms. "I can do anything..."
"Not this time. I'm sorry, Kim," said Wade.
Ron and Mrs. Possible took Kim and strapped her to her seat. Kim paid no attention, crying into a small towel her mom had handed her.
Everyone secure, the Plane's engines fired up, and moved them away, back towards the blue and white ball they called home.
Behind them, the rubble of a once-proud asteroid continued to expand into space.
An hour later, Wade called. "Guys, my analysis shows it worked. Shego's power broke up the asteroid into small pieces. The largest I can find is about the size of a softball. She also changed the orbit of a lot of it, so it will miss earth this time. Looks like we have a new meteor shower."
The good news did little to dispel the somber mood aboard the Plane. Mrs. Possible finally had to give Kim a pill to calm her down.
"We'll be back on the ground tomorrow," said Mr. Possible. There was no response from the rest of the crew.