Conclusion
"Ready for round two?" Ron asked. Monkey Fist looked furious.
"The conjunction is almost upon us…but I can take this much time…. As you teens say…. Bring it."
"Fine with me."
"Boys…" Bonnie said under her breath and as Ron and Monkey Fist charged each other, she backflipped over to Josh. "Are you ready?"
"Um…what about them?" Josh asked. Bonnie looked over, and there were monkeys. Lots of them. All heading for her. "You do know kung fu, right?" Josh asked.
"Ron made me watch a bunch of Hong Kong movies…oh, and Kung Pow! Bonnie replied, smiling nervously."
"So you…."
"I'm gonna improvise." Bonnie said, and dove for the monkeys, and unleashed an amazing collection of cheerleading moves that had them missing her as she bounced into the middle of the room, where Ron and Monkey Fist were standing before each other. Bonnie didn't have time to say anything, as she desperately tried to avoid probably the most ridiculous death on the face of the earth.
I might die, but I am not going to go down in high school history as the girl who was killed by a bunch of escapees from a zoo!
"You are skilled, but no match for a true master…" Monkey Fist said, "Leave now, and I will not pursue."
"How about you surrender, and I will not pound you." Ron said.
"So on your head be it." With that the two launched into a flurry of blows, and Ron found himself on the defensive.
This guy is good. Really, really good. He thought. Moments later the door burst open and in came Kim and Senior.
"Everyone's gone!" Kim shouted out. Under her breath, she muttered, "I hope you're right."
"We will soon know." Senior said, affably.
"What? My hostages?" Monkey Fist suddenly looked like well…a rabid monkey.
"You'll pay for that!" He screamed. "Monkey Ninjas—ignore that woman, take them!" Then, all of a sudden, Ron was attacking Monkey fist, fury on his face, forcing the martial artist to retreat.
"Kim! Get out of here! Hurry!" Ron said, fear in his voice.
Always protecting me. Kim thought, but then there was no time as the Ninjas leaped for the two, the old man and handicapped girl, screaming with rage…..
And had no chance to back off as a pair of CO2 fire extinguishers sprayed out their freezing clouds of white into their faces. Screams of rage turned to panic, as every monkey decamped through any available doors or windows.
"Monkey Ninjas! Don't flee!" Monkey Fist screamed—to a suddenly monkey free room.
"Wow…I can't believe that worked." Kim said.
"As I said," Senior said, "animals, no matter how well trained, instinctively flee from unusual events…"
"And what is your plan now?" Monkey Fist growled, preparing to take the place of his fled minions, but before he got to them, Ron was there, fighting him for all he was worth, driving him to the center of the room, between all those odd statues. Suddenly, Bonnie was with him, kicking Monkey Fist.
"You didn't know Martial arts!" Ron shouted.
"Who cares—I'm just doing what I did the last time someone spilled food on me!" She shouted back. Monkey Fist was being pushed back and looked up, and suddenly looked panicked.
"No! You can't be here!"
"Well, you shouldn't have kidnapped our friends!" Ron shouted.
"That's not what I mea-" The clock started to strike midnight. The idols started to glow. The eyes burned green.
"Oh this can't be good." Kim said. All of a sudden, beams of green energy struck all three, lifting them into the air.
"NOOOOOO! MYSTICAL MONKEY POWER WAS TO BE MINE ALONE! Not split three ways!" Fist screamed as the glow faded and he, Ron and Bonnie thumped back on to the floor.
"Now, I'll, def-oof!" Suddenly, Bonnie was on his chest, holding him down. Ron looked puzzled.
"I feel… a little stronger, faster…" He said.
"Who cares about that!" Bonnie shouted. "Mystical monkey power…am I going to get a unibrow?"
"Wha?" Monkey Fist.
"AM I GOING TO GET A UNIBROW?" Bonnie shouted, "You said it was monkey power…am I going to look like you?"
"No, that was radical genetic mutation." He said, "But I will destroy for stealing my power-" Suddenly, Bonnie hauled off and slugged him in the jaw. Monkey Fists eyes crossed, uncrossed, and then closed as he fell back, unconscious."
"So don't care… you ruined the entire date!"
"Well, we did get mystical monkey power out of it." Ron said. "Whatever that is…"
Kim was wheeling down to where Josh was, and the two teens hugged each other.
"I'll look it up in the computer… " Kim said, as the sound of sirens started up. "Now they come!"
"An excellent outcome!" Senior said, "I have not felt so young…well, since I was that young!"
"You enjoyed this?" Kim said.
"And you did not?"
"Well…now that you mention it…" She grinned, and then blushed as Josh commented.
"So you want every date to have a mad villain?"
"Maybe…only the special ones." Kim said, leaning into his hand.
"So…you know what this requires." Ron said, as the first group of police charged into the room.
"Oh God, no." Bonnie said.
"Yes!" Ron said. "A celebration…and the place to celebrate is… Bueno Nacho!"
"Ron…" Kim said, "Mr. Senior is…"
"Ecstatic at the chance!" Senior said. "Let us go as soon as we are done here."
It took a little time—first they had to give their reports to the police, the discrption of the monkey ninjas to animal control, and a last confrontation with Monkey Fist…for most of them.
"I WILL HAVE MYSTICAL MONKEY POWER! YOU WILL NOT TAKE IT FROM ME!" He shouted at Ron and Bonnie, and then turned to Josh.
"And as for you…" Josh tensed. He really didn't need his own crazy nemesis. "I see your point with the picture—the question is where does the monkey stop and the man begin! I will pay you one thousand dollars for the completed picture, and I have a series in mind—seven pictures exploring the nobility of the monkey inside the man, for a thousand apiece.… I'll have my man servant Bates contact you with the payment information…" His voice trailed off as he was put in the paddy wagon.
"Hmph…." Senior said, "Your skill demands more than one thousand…still… he is a well known art critic…."
"So… do I take the money?" Josh asked, "He's a super villain."
"He's offering you eight thousand dollars." Kim said. "You take the money."
"Oka-mph!" Josh broke off as Kim pulled him down for a kiss. Senior sighed.
"Ah, young love…." Meanwhile, Bonnie and Ron were talking.
"Bonnie, what was that with diving in?"
"You're my boyfriend…he was trying to hurt you…end of argument." She grinned, "And besides, now I have mystical monkey power…so you'd better train me…" on hand started trailing down his shirt clad chest. "Maybe even starting with some close combat exercises…" Before Ron could say anything, Bonnie was imitating Kim.
"Times two." Senior said, smiling to himself, as he arranged for their transport to Bueno Nacho…where he was certain they'd find something to eat, especially once he covered the tab. He laughed softly. Maybe there was more to life than being a bored old rich man… he had had more fun in these few hours than he'd had in the entire previous year…
"Yes… " He said, "That definitely brings up possibilities…"
Epilogue:
"Well…it was fun Josh." Kim said, as She and Josh stopped at her house. Josh grinned.
"Between the panic…yeah, it was." Josh said. "And you get the exclusive." Kim practically bounced in her wheelchair, her face alight.
"Well, since I was the only reporter there, even if I'm just with the school… yeah! The New York Times actually sent an email to my PDA…to me! " Kim grinned, "I have to get the story ready tomorrow, and send it off, not to mention the other stuff for the school and the-"
"And it's two thirty in the morning." Her mother said from the door. "Perhaps you might do a bit better if you had some sleep?" Kim's face fell slightly.
"Oh… yeah… I guess…. We should…"
"You can take a few minutes to say goodnight." Her mother said, smiling. "Besides, you'll see each other in about 6 hours…" She paused, "I did get a call from animal control… they got the last of the monkeys."
"Oh, that's good." Kim said, paying no attention to her mom as she looked into Josh's eyes. Her mother sighed affectionately and closed the door. She'd give them about ten minutes.
Her husband was always worried…
But I'm not. Kimmie, you have a loving man there. Andrea didn't confide, not in anyone, her fear…but she'd seen it all too often, where people only saw the outside, and when handicapped was read as useless. Josh didn't see Kim in the wheelchair, he saw Kim, his girlfriend, in some ways more clearly than anyone else, even Kim's parents, and Andrea adored Josh for that.
And was willing to keep their little secrets. A year ago, Kim and Josh had vanished for a study session, one that had broken up with a nearly palpable air of panic when she'd returned from the hospital. She was certain that Kim thought she was being very clever and subtle when she'd asked her mother for "help" on a school project involving how you could get blood stains out of bed sheets…. No doubt also never considering the fact that her mother had also lost her virginity at one point in her life.
She'd watched after that, her doctors mind concerned—sometimes it was possible that sex could be a sign of self hatred, but there was none of that, and in any case, Kim and Josh had known each other, been close, for over a year. They, as near as she could tell, had only had sex a few times since then…. And she was certain that it was because they loved each other very much. So, Dr. Possible made certain her daughter's implant was kept up to date, and pretended she had no idea. Her husband certainly didn't. Wonderful dear…but to him, Kimmie-cub would always be six.
But I'm not going to say wait until tomorrow. What happened to you proved that you can't depend on what type of tomorrow you'll have. You can only depend on what type of today you make it. She chuckled.
Besides…it'd be pot calling the kettle black for me to complain about them, given that Kim waited a full year longer than I did… With that, she went to put some tea on the stove, and wait for her daughter to come in.
"Well, I'll see you tomorrow." Josh said, with some reluctance.
"Yeah…" Kim said, as Josh bent down to kiss her. The kiss was long…
If mom knew some of the things… I'd be at some handicapped military school and Josh would be in a Black Hole. But it didn't matter. Kim loved Josh… He'd met her when she was handicapped, and had never looked at her as anything but Kim. That was something nobody else, not her parents, not Ron, not Bonnie had been able to do, at least not completely. But not Josh…and in the two and a half years they'd known each other… They broke the kiss off and Kim held his hand, pulling it to her cheek.
"Love you." She softly said.
"You too, Kim…" Josh responded. Kim watched him as he walked off, the slight disappointment at his absence warring with the anticipation of seeing him tomorrow.
Then, she wheeled her self into her house. Mom was right. She'd better get some sleep. Tomorrow was a big day.
End of Altered Realities, Part I.
Next part: City Hall Capers.
Kim's enjoying her new job as Middleton High's newspaper editor, but she comes across some very odd data about some of the city councilmen. Why are they so interested in pressing a new video game store, and what does that have to do with the strange behavior of some of her friends?