"So let me get this straight: the bad guy, er, woman got away, leaving us and the treasure to be blown to smithereens?" Ron said.
"Yeah. That pretty much covers it," Lee said pessimistically.
Princess Natalia was still sprawled on the sand.
"Don't worry, I have a plan." The teen hero spoke up. "Lee, get out of here as fast as you can! And take the treasure chest with you."
Lela opened her mouth. Kim already knew what was on her mind.
"That trunk is heavy. You can't afford to take her with you."
"But-"
"We'll bring Nattie later. Nobody is going to get blown up, okay?" When she said this, she looked sternly at her blonde friend who had a tendency to overreact.
Reluctantly the princess started running as fast as the lofty treasure would permit.
"So what's our plan?" Stoppable asked.
"I…haven't made it up yet."
"But you said-"
"I only said that to make Lee feel better. That doesn't mean I can't come up with one. Anything's possible for a Possible!"
Ron muttered, "Doesn't that make you feel a bit sorry for the rest of us?"
"Ron!"
"Sorry KP. Sea air makes me crabby."
Wade drummed his fingers on the computer desk boredly. "If you two are finished, I'd like to remind you that a bomb is going to detonate in less than 60 seconds."
"What do you suppose we do, Mr. Supergenius?"
"Well, you could just turn around and run. That would still mean a lot of damage to the shipping docks. Or you could let me examine the explosive device."
"How fast can you examine?" Ron asked.
"Faster than you can say 'sub-orbital data compiler.' "
"That'll have to do." Kim brought the Kimmunicator within safe distance of the explosive.
Wade scrutinized it for a moment, then typed something in a frenzy.
His eyes lit up when he saw the results on the monitor screen.
"Unbelievable!"
"What?" Kim asked curiously.
"Of all the luck in New Byzantium!"
"What?" Ron did the same.
"Who would have thought!"
"What!" They cried out exasperatedly.
"It's only a minor impact cherry bomb. It won't do any damage to the docks- you guys might lose a few limbs, though."
"Oh yes. That issuch good news!" Ron rolled his eyes.
"At least he's trying to help, unlike some people!" Kim glared.
"This is not a good time to have your first couple fight," the 12-year-old warned.
"Well, I could have been at home enjoying nacos, but no! I had to go and make friends with a teenage crime fighter who drags me all over the world!"
"Will you stop thinking about stupid nacos!" Kim snapped.
Wade was getting alarmed. "Uh, guys?"
"I can't believe you just insulted the naco! Rufus is not going to be happy about this!" The argument continued.
"Oh, sure- side with the naked mole rat!"
"GUYS!" Wade shouted.
"What?" They cried out again, this time more heatedly.
"The bomb will explode in under three seconds!"
Right on cue a deafening BOOM rang out from behind them. Kim dropped the handheld device in surprise, causing Wade to lose his connection and disappear from the screen. The scene was thick with dark gray smoke. Bits of debris flew everywhere. All was silent for a few minutes.
Eventually Ron emerged from the destruction, coughing and sputtering. He squinted through watery eyes, examining the damage done to him. Aside from charred clothing, he seemed to be extraordinarily well. At the moment he realized this, his pants fell down yet again.
"Man! I thought that curse had been lifted," the boy grumbled as he pulled the formal trousers back up. Then he glimpsed the Kimmunicator- which was, of course, indestructible- and looked around confusedly.
"Where's Kim?" he wondered, forcing himself to dive back into the mess created by the explosion.
A few minutes later, he emerged dragging a limp female body. He set her carefully on an unaffected stretch of sand.
"KP, wake up!" he shook her shoulder gently.
Nothing happened.
"Come on, Kim! Don't scare me like this." Ron waited impatiently. "We've still got some world saving to do."
She did not show the slightest hint of movement.
By then, Wade had retraced the signal to the Kimmunicator.
Ron heard the familiar beeping of the handheld device, scooping it up from the ground.
"Are you okay, Ron?" the boy asked.
"I'm fine. Kim's not! What's going on, Wade?" He threw up his hands helplessly.
"Is she breathing?"
"I- I'm not sure. This can't be happening!" Ron re-entered his conclusion-jumping, overreacting mode.
"Oh Wade, she was so young! So brave! Come back to us, Kimmie! Come back!" He bent over the body in despair.
"Get a grip, Ron!" The younger instructed, though a small bubble of panic was rising within him also. In all their missions, Kim had hardly ever been down like this. She couldn't possibly be…
The blonde boy put his hands over his face disgracefully. "And to think- the last words I said to her were something about…whatever it was we were arguing over." In his recent terror, he had forgotten everything else.
Finally a tiny new thought entered his mind: Princess Nattie, she must have been impacted by the explosion too. But there was no time to look for her; Kim needed help immediately.
"I just received a message from Global Justice," Wade's voice quivered slightly.
"What is it?" Ron spoke not even half-heartedly.
"They've apprehended Queen Edessa. Lee must be at the palace by now. You have to get Kim there- for all of us."
Ron lifted the lifeless teen and started carrying her towards the palace. No one spoke a word.
Princess Lela could hardly believe it. After centuries of legends, countless failures by some of the world's greatest heroes, and the most oddly exciting night of her life, this was it. The treasure as old as Byzantium. Something emperors and peasants must have dreamed of for years.
When she arrived breathlessly at Byzantine Palace, it seemed to look the same. Serene and peaceful as her home had always been. Though it was dark she detected the invisible signs of twilight. It had to be sometime in the early morning hours.
Inside, the ancient mansion was eerily quiet. She stepped through noiseless hallways and deserted corridors until she reached the place where there was always activity: the Royal Throneroom.
Carefully pushing a strong oak door, Lee saw an extremely welcome sight awaited her. Five princesses, along with a king, sat huddled together on the floor. The GJ gadget had safely transported them to the next day, then. But very early the next day.
Saara was the first to see. "LEE! It's Lee!"
The other royals comprehended and turned look at the opening door.
To Lela's surprise, five young women rushed to embrace her at once.
"What happened"
"Where were you"
"We were so afraid"
"That horrible woman"
"I thought we'd never see you again!" Adriana was the one who said this. She was also the one with the most tearstained clothes and the one who hugged her sister the hardest.
The mayhem of questions and comments ended when, with a slight limp, King Leopold walked over to his daughters.
Hurriedly they stepped aside, forming a respectful line.
His eyes were piercing and mighty. For a moment, the King stared at the girl before him. It looked as thought he was prepared to yell.
"Lela, the others have told me you went with Kim Possible." The less bold princesses shifted their eyes to the floor.
"You chose to fight, to leave the security of the palace and of your family. You disregarded the Imperial Code and disgraced the honor of your royal duties." His tone was stern and yet soft.
Lee bowed her head, expecting this to only be the calm before the storm.
King Leo reached out and stroked her hair in a rather unKing-like way.
"There is something I have forgotten for a long time, my dears. Lela, though you happen to be, by birthright, a Princess: a daughter of New Byzantium, you are also more importantly a daughter of my own."
The girls were confused. This was definitely not something written by a close adviser.
"Your Majesty?" Lee questioned.
"Yes, princesses. There is one lesson I have not taught you as King." He was now addressing all of them.
"Sometimes, the most important rule is that some rules are meant to be broken." There was a twinkle in his eye they had never seen before.
They assured her the ball guests had all been sent home, along with the palace guards. Lee then explained about their adventure, her fear that the Queen was coming, and treasure trunk she had brought with her.
Suddenly the door opened once again to welcome another person.
Ron made it to the palace at last. Extensive searching of the corridors showed that the place was pretty much deserted.
"Wade, this is really getting annoying," he said after checking yet another empty chamber. How were they supposed to save Kim if nobody was around to help?
"Well, I am taking a few online courses at Harvard Medical School in my free time," Wade hinted.
"No way! Dude, you're a doctor and you didn't tell me?"
"Not a certified MD," the boy said modestly. "I've only taken a few classes so far but-"
Ron checked a large room in the center of the building. They were greeted with a few happy squeals.
"Wade, I found the royals!" he turned the Kimmunicator screen so the other boy could see.
Ron was immediately ambushed by several girls. All ignored him and crowded around the unconscious female- except for one.
"Ron!" Kim hugged him earnestly.
"KP, you're alive!" he exclaimed, then became confused as the situation dawned on him. He looked back and forth from Kim to the identical girl perplexedly.
"What is it?" she asked.
"You- her- but- ouch! Brain pain!"
It took a few minutes for everyone to explain their side of the story. Ron had mistaken Natalia for Kim in his panic. Kim, on the other hand, had recovered from the blast after both Ron and the Kimmunicator were gone. She hastened to the palace and got there before him because he had an extra person to slow him down.
Ron scratched his head. "So…it was her the whole time?" he pointed to the unconscious princess.
"I guess so." Kim was a little confused herself.
She turned to the princesses.
"Kim, thanks for everything!" Lee said gratefully. "I would have never saved the Empire without you." (Wade notified everyone that Queen Edessa was captured.)
"No big," she responded as usual. "And I have to say, this definitely was an…interesting mission."
Lee grinned. "What can I say? It's a weird country."
Meanwhile Ron fraternized with King Leo, who stood off to the side by himself.
"So, Your Excellency, you've just recovered the lost treasure of New Byzantium. What will you do next?" The blonde boy asked as if he was speaking to the winner of the Superbowl.
"Actually, Ronald Stoppable, I plan to spend some time with my family," the ruler answered.
Princess Nattie finally started waking up. "Give her a little room to breathe, will you?" Lee told her sisters who were hovering around the girl.
Natalia blinked twice, then said, "W- what happened? Lipsky… evil."
"Shh. Save your energy, Nattie," Izzy advised. "And don't worry, the villains are gone. Everything will be better now."
Nattie stayed quiet but pointed inquisitively to the jewel-encrusted bronze trunk.
Suddenly everyone remembered the object which had caused this chain of events.
"Should we open it?" Ali wondered aloud.
"Of course!" Adriana relapsed to her snobbish attitude.
"I was going to wait for Nattie to wake up," Lee explained in a low voice. "And for Team Possible- you deserve to be here more than any of us."
"So not the drama," Kim blushed.
"Let's do it already! I mean, King Leo's not getting any younger," Ron added, not intending to be ill-mannered.
All eight girls looked at him, mortified.
The King merely chuckled. "He's right, you know."
Ceremoniously, Lee slipped the key into the lock. Each person put a hand on the key; they turned it together.
No one knew quite what to expect as Merisa and Saara lifted the lid.
Inside the chest was a thick stack of papyrus-made paper, stained yellow with age.
Ron, Adriana, and some of the others cast disappointed glances.
Princess Lela smiled radiantly. She touched the first paper with care.
"We should've known," she whispered.
"Known what?" Ana said loudly. "This isn't treasure; it's not even gold!"
"It's better than gold," Kim answered knowingly.
Isadora gasped. "You mean-?"
"It's Constantine's Code! Don't you get it? The Imperial Code is removed. We can reinstate the old rules, the fair rules!" rejoiced Lee.
No one looked happier than King Leopold himself. "How did you girls know about Constantine's Code?"
"A guard told us last Sunday," Ali explained. "We thought it was just a legend. And now it turns out Team Possible found it."
"Lee helped a lot," Ron offered.
"You all did in your own way," Kim added.
Adriana looked like she was about to say something mean and spiteful. She didn't.
"In a weird way, I kind of feel bad about being mean to you, Stoppable. I guess I was-" she grimaced as if having trouble saying the word. "I was wrong. You're kind of okay."
"Thanks…I guess."
"I think," the king said. "It will take the effort of all of my princesses to make this Empire right again. Though it could be many months-"
Lee was stricken by this last comment. "But your Majesty-"
"Please call me Dad if you wish," he smiled.
"Only if you call me Lee."
King Leo smiled broader.
"But Dad, I- I want to go out into the world on my own, be something more than a princess."
His smile vanished for a moment. "Very well, Lee."
"At the end of the summer," she added, making his grin return again.
The Kimmunicator beeped.
"It's time for us to say goodbye," Kim said.
"Where are you going, Miss Possible?" the ruler asked.
"Home." She relished the word. "To Middleton, USA."
Before anyone could ask exactly what state it was in, a GJ plane landed outside the palace.
"Keep in touch!" Lee called after them.
"We will," Kim and Ron answered.
The Imperial family waved as Team Possible left New Byzantium and headed back to the place they truly belonged.
Home.
It seems like it's over but there are still a few loose ends to be tied. They will be tied soon.