Thanks to Jasminevr, campy, WhiteLadyoftheRing, The Halfa Wannabe, Zaratan, charizardag, demiryu, Lil-Lyon, mattb3671, warprince2000, the real Violet Parr, darkwolfstoppable, cman1p2, IncrediRaider8, demon-sword, Texas Dad, Dark Jackel, and G-Go for their reviews. I especially appreciated the many comments you shared on the death of Mr. Stoppable. Thanks, too, to those who added Epic Sitch to their favs or alert lists.
As always, my appreciation to campy for his editorial services. FYI, if you're looking for something fun and witty to read, check out his Essential Ronness II: James Regroups.
For the lawyers: It's on KP on TV, I know Disney owns it. Yadda, yadda.
I.
Kim and Ron met Yori and Hirotaka at the airport, thrilled to be welcoming their Yamanuchi friends to Middleton. As the foursome left the building, Ron began leading them away from the parking lot.
"Stoppable-san, where are you going?" Yori asked, clearly puzzled, assuming they would go to a car.
"Sorry, Yori, no ride. Today, It will be our honor to walk!" Ron answered with a satisfied smile.
She looked at him for the briefest of moments then laughed. "Oh, you and your American-style jokes!"
Ron's smile immediately turned to a frown.
Kim chuckled, then tousled her boyfriend's hair. "Nice try. I so told you she wouldn't fall for that!"
II.
Hirotaka stayed with the Stoppables, Yori with the Possibles. Ron and Hirotaka happily ignored their girlfriends so they could roar around town in the Ferret Mobile; Kim enjoyed entertaining not only Yori but also Nana, who upon hearing that two students from her alma mater were going to be in town, had decided to pay an impromptu visit. Happily, unlike at Christmas, Kim didn't feel like an outsider. She and Nana and Yori talked about the secret ninja school late into the night.
III.
Nana had gone to bed, leaving the two young women alone.
"Stoppable-san appears to be bearing his loss well," Yori observed.
"All things considered, he is, though he's still torn up inside. I don't know how he's done it, Yori. Ron's been a rock." Kim said shaking her head, a bit of awe in her voice.
"Perhaps that is because you have been his rock, Kim-san..."
Kim looked at her visitor.
"… Do not ever underestimate the strength that Stoppa … that Ron-san draws from you. You know how I felt about him. But it was clear to me that his heart was with you; it always has been."
"I know, Yori. I so wish I'd seen it sooner. Because what you say about him is true for me, too. He's my rock." She paused, then smiled. "And even though I didn't always see it, he always has been, ever since I first met him in pre-K."
They sat in silence. Yori looked thoughtfully at her host. "Kim-san, may I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"It is … about Ron-san," Yori said hesitantly.
"No big," Kim replied.
"Your love for Ron-san was already strong and deep when you came to Yamanuchi last summer. Yet just a few months earlier you were still only friends after so many years. Why did it take you so long to act on your feelings?"
Kim sat pensively, considering Yori's question. She thought back to what she'd told Ron on Valentine's Day, of how she'd been confused by her emerging romantic feelings for her lifelong friend. While that was true, it wasn't the whole story. She realized she needed to tell all to someone. Kim sighed, then looked at Yori.
"Sometime during our junior year I began to wonder about Ron and me. We'd been best friends since, like, forever. I'd never seen him as a guy; he was just … Ron. But then some things happened. Little things. And they got me thinking. Looking at him differently, noticing things like his eyes, his hair, his ears …" Kim blushed as Yori giggled. "It was all so confusing. Awk-weird, really. Then there was that whole moodulator thing; that's when I found out that I really enjoyed kissing Ron. But nothing happened after that; Ron later told me that he was terrified of ruining our friendship. So was I. But at the time I didn't know what to think. By the time of that business with Monkey Fist when you and I first met, I suspected that I liked liked Ron. I didn't want to admit it, but I was so jelling over you. And if I were really to be honest, I never really liked it when other girls took an interest in him. So I wondered whether I should make the first move."
"But you did not," Yori said.
Kim shook her head. "No, I did not." She began to fidget. What she was about to say still shamed her. "Yori, you know my motto? She can do anything? Well, that includes being a complete idiot. I almost blew it – everything – with Ron …"
Yori looked inquisitively at her host.
Kim paused then took a deep breath. "Let me tell you about my family. My little brothers are already doing things like building laser guns and force fields from stuff that Dad leaves lying around the house; Dad will probably build a faster-than-light rocket ship by the time he's sixty, and Mom's going to win a Nobel Prize in Medicine sooner or later. Me? I'm a straight-A, honor roll student. But I work hard for that. There are times when I'm around my parents and brothers and I just feel like I'm really slow.
"I first got into the saving the world thing because of a boast I made on my web-site. I'd been babysitting, getting cats out of trees, that kind of thing. Then I got the call for my first real mission. I wasn't sure at first, but Ron believed in me and encouraged me, I decided to give it a try, and I succeeded. It was spankin'. I always liked helping people, so the missions were a great thing to start doing. But I'd be lying if I didn't admit that it was also something I could do so much better than anyone else in my family and everybody, everywhere, soon knew it. Before long, I began to earn a reputation. I may not have had an IQ of 200 like the tweebs, but everyone knew that I was Kim Possible and I could do anything."
"So how does Ron-san fit into this?"
"Ron-san," Kim sighed. "You know, I couldn't do the save the world thing without him. But I was always the star, Ron the supporting actor. By last year I'd reached a point where my ego needed him in that role. I think that's one of the reasons I reacted so weirdly when you talked about what Ron had done at Yamanuchi. You were describing someone who should be my partner, my equal, not my … sidekick." Kim cringed as she said that, then continued. "But no way. That would have so upended everything. I liked things the way they were with the missions. I didn't want anything to change. If we dated, then everything would change. And since Ron always seemed willing to do things on my terms, even when I was interested in other guys, I guess I subconsciously thought I could have my cake and eat it, too."
Yori looked puzzled.
Kim realized the idiom made no sense to her Japanese friend. "It meant I wouldn't have to make any choices. So as I began to want a boyfriend, I began looking everywhere other than the one place where I should have …"
Yori nodded with understanding.
"… Anyway, before the prom last year, this girl named Bonnie had been going on about the Food Chain and who you went with said everything about you and how I was going to be stuck going to the dance with my 'not a BF'" … Kim, seeing Yori's confusion explained, "Boyfriend, 'BF' – Ron.
"And you know what I did? I let her get to me. I could have said, 'Hey, I like him, maybe he should be my BF!' Kim hung her head, then added quietly. "But I didn't." She sat quietly for a moment before continuing. "It didn't matter that I'd actually thought about Ron and me. It didn't matter that we'd been best friends for 12 years; that in his own way he was the bravest person I'd ever known; that he indulged me in the world-saving thing, which was my passion; that he'd actually saved me more than once; made me happy when we spent time together; and that he was actually kind of cute, in his Ron kind of way. No. He wasn't … 'boyfriend material.'" Kim winced as she said that, "No, I needed someone better, because Ron wasn't the smartest or best looking guy around and he definitely wasn't high on the Food Chain. And I was Kim Possible, world-famous teen hero, cheer squad captain, student leader, blah, blah, blah."
Kim's shoulders sagged when see saw the look of disappointment on Yori's face, though she couldn't blame her for the reaction. She then took a deep breath.
"I actually began spending less time with him," she continued, her eyes beginning to tear up. "And then Eric came along, and I basically ignored Ron, except for missions. I, I so took him for granted. I knew the whole Eric thing was bothering him. He didn't want to talk about it, but rather than try to draw him out, I let it drop and avoided the problem. I told him we'd still be 'tight' – that really must have sounded awful. I was in danger of throwing away the best friend I'd ever had for some hottie I'd only recently met. I was a complete and total jerk."
Yori saw how recounting these events pained her friend. She took Kim's hand and sat quietly, wondering where this was going.
"Well, you know about the whole L'il Diablo/Drakken thing …" Kim sniffed.
Yori nodded. Who didn't? She still remembered watching as the giant robots filled the skies of Japan.
"… well, there's Ron. My dad was kidnapped; he came along to help save him. Ron didn't say, 'Go have Eric help you'. Eric disappears and Ron comes along to help me save this guy he feels is taking away his best friend on whom he just happens to be crushing. I remember throwing myself at Eric when we found him; that must have been like a kick in the stomach for Ron." Kim paused. "Then I was zapped by that syntho-loser and when I wake up, who's there with me? Ron. He didn't try to save himself or run away, he let himself get captured trying to save me." Kim looked away from Yori towards the prom picture she kept next to her bed. She picked it up and looked at it. "Then, for the first time in my life, I just … gave up. And what does Ron do? He boosts my morale, says everything I really needed to hear at that moment. He could have tried to make a play for me, take advantage of the situation, but all he wanted to do was get my spirits up. It was only when I began to wonder aloud if there was someone out there for me that Ron finally began to tell me how he felt. And that's when I felt like a ton of bricks had fallen on me. I'd been such the fool.
"I remember how you looked at him when we went after Monkey Fist, Yori. There was real respect. I remember how you called him a Warrior Hero. And how I scoffed. But then I found myself in that storeroom, and I knew what you'd been talking about.
"All of a sudden, I saw him differently. And it blew me away. There he was. Right by my side all that time. I'd been looking for the perfect guy when what I should have been looking for was the perfect guy for me," Kim concluded.
Yori nodded. "Sensei would say that sometimes a mighty oak must fall and die before it can plant a seed and be reborn."
"And what would Yori say?" Kim asked.
"That just as Ron-san has changed and grown over the past year, so have you. You had to let go of your fears and, what was it I heard Ron-san call it, ah yes, big-headiness, before you could embrace your feelings. You and your relationship are stronger for it, Kim-san."
"Thanks, Yori," she replied, offering a wry grin. "You know, for a seventeen year old, you're very wise."
Yori smiled. "You live with Sensei your entire life and you too will become a walking encyclopedia of aphorisms!'
Kim laughed. She liked Yori's lighter side.
"I am just glad," Yori said with a grin, "that you discovered Ron-san was boyfriend material!"
"Boyfriend material?" Kim responded with a huge smile. "Ron's better than that. He's spend-the-rest-of-my-life-with material!" She was now holding the picture close to her chest. Then, with an eager, inquisitive expression on her face, she said to Yori, "Okay, now that I've spilled my beans, it's your turn to tell all. What's the current sitch with you and Hirotaka?"
Yori happily began talking about her beau.
IV.
While Kim and Yori bared their souls to one another, Ron and Hirotaka went on-line and looked at motorcycles and played video games.
V.
The day of the prom arrived.
Kim looked at herself in the mirror. Monique had convinced her to buy the floor-length dress she was now wearing. And while Kim had to admit it was stunning, for some reason it left her feeling empty. At least it went well with Ron's pearls.
"Kim-san?"
Kim turned and was breathless.
"Yori, that is so beautiful!" Kim admired the full-length traditional silk kimono her friend was wearing.
"You like it?" Yori asked, knowing she was already getting the reaction she sought. Quiet Yori actually knew how to set herself apart from the crowd.
"I do. Just remember, you've got Hirotaka and you can have any of the other guys tonight. But Ron's mine!" she said with a growl, followed by a grin. Kim was secretly relieved that Ron had never seen Yori in this outfit before they had begun dating; otherwise it might have been Yori and not her going to the prom with him tonight.
Yori laughed. "You need not worry, Kim-san. I do not think Ron-san will be looking at anyone other than you. Your dress, too, is beautiful."
"It's okay," Kim acknowledged, sitting down on her bed.
"You are not pleased?"
Kim shrugged her shoulders. "I just wanted something special, something that tells Ron how much I love him."
Ann walked into the room as Kim was speaking. She, too, admired Yori's kimono. She then appraised her daughter's dress. Walking to Kim's closet, she said, "Kimmie, may I make a suggestion?"
VI.
Ron looked at himself in the mirror. Never in his life did he dream he would spend so much money on clothing. He was wearing a custom-tailored, traditionally-cut tuxedo. No Smarty Mart special for him, this had been made by Mr. Nakasumi's own personal tailor, who had been flown in from Hong Kong. Ron had been determined that tonight he would look like the guy who should be Kim Possible's boyfriend. Yet he felt like a phony. He knew Kim didn't care about what he wore.
He saw his visitor reflected in the mirror. Hirotaka was nodding appreciatively. "I am most impressed, Ron."
"Thanks. You look great, too, dude." Ron replied, grateful for his friend's compliment. Hirotaka was to men's fashion what Ron was to nacos: an authority with impeccable credentials. "Rufus?"
The naked mole rat, who was joined by his partner, stood on the bureau, motioned Ron to bend down and straightened his friend's tie. Rufus and Rufina both gave a big thumb's up.
Hirotaka could see that his friend was somewhat distracted. "Is everything all right, Ron?"
Ron sat down on the edge of his bed, casting a glance at the picture of the Stoppables and Possibles that had been taken at Hanukkah. He sighed. "Yeah. No. I don't know. This rig isn't me. And I wish Dad was here. I know he would have liked to take pictures of us tonight." Ron smiled. "Man, was he happy when I started dating Kim …"
"Perhaps you could take his picture in your pocket. Then he will be present in more than spirit."
Ron looked at Hirotaka. "That's a nice idea." Then he looked at his tuxedo again. "Heyyyy, that gives me another idea …"
VII.
Barbara Jo Stoppable was already at the Possibles, waiting eagerly with James for the boys to arrive so they could begin taking pictures. Ann and Barbara Jo had encouraged Kim and Yori to make dramatic entrances. Yori would appear at the top of the stairs, then come down to meet Hirotaka; Kim would then follow suit.
Ron rang the doorbell, his heart racing. He was nervous. He hoped he'd made the right decision.
James opened the door and smiled as he greeted the two young men. "Well, it looks like we have two phat visitors here!"
Ron hoped Kim hadn't heard her father's latest cringe-inducing attempt to sound cool.
Hirotaka was simply mystified, unable to understand why this seemingly pleasant man, who had been very gracious when they first met the previous day, was now insulting him? Besides, Hirotaka didn't think he looked fat at all.
As they followed James in through the door, Ron whispered to Hirotaka, "S'kay, he's trying to be hip."
"Ahh," Hirotaka said, nodding with recognition. Phat, not fat. Middle-aged men trying to sound cool was apparently as much a problem in America as it was back home in Japan.
Yori soon appeared at the top of the stairs. Hirotaka smiled, then bowed, as Yori descended the stairs to him.
Ron couldn't help but compliment his friend. "Wow, Yori, youlook badical."
She smiled in reply, taking in Ron's tuxedo. "Thank you, Ron-san. But I think you will agree that tonight I am not as – badical – as Kim-san."
Ron looked up to the landing and when he saw his girlfriend his jaw dropped.
Her hair was put up, just as it had been for the previous year's prom. She was wearing a sleeveless blue dress, one with a charred hem. And she was wearing the pearls he had given her. Her smile was radiant. But that was because of what she saw at the bottom of the stairs. There Ron stood, wearing his baby blue tuxedo, ruffled shirt and sneakers.
When she reached Ron she took his hands and curled her pinkies with his, then locked gazes with him.
"Nice tux, handsome."
"Seemed right. And you're looking mighty fine yourself, KP."
Kim pulled Ron close, leaning her forehead against his. They stood there quietly for a moment, lost in each other's company, oblivious to James and Barbara Jo who were furiously snapping pictures.
"So," Ron asked, "you down with skipping the whole take over the world part of the night and going straight to the slow dance?"
"Only if you promise it will include a kiss like the one we had last year."
"Uh, that I think I can promise," he said before bringing his lips to hers, not worrying whether Kim's dad was going to threaten him with a one-way trip to deep space.
VIII.
Kim was delighted that Yori and Hirotaka were the center of attention. It was a pleasant change from the previous year. After making some introductions and visiting with friends, she and Ron made their way to the dance floor. As always, she was impressed with his dance moves. "You really do groove, Ron!"
"Hey, I told you years ago, I am one bon-diggity dancer! But you are too, KP. You've definitely got the funk!"
She laughed then looked at Ron and he at her. Then they both said, "This is SO much better than last year!"
"Jinx!" Kim called, causing Ron to double over in laughter.
"I just can't win!" he said, pulling her to him, as she laughed, too. "So what's it gonna be this time?"
As Kim was considering what kind of culinary creation she would demand of her boyfriend, one of the jocks, who much to their dates' annoyance were gathered in the corner watching the ball game on a hand-held TV, exclaimed, "Hey! This is rank! Who is this dude?"
"I bet Possible will know," his buddy said. "She and Stoppable aren't dancing. Let's ask."
Kim and Ron were still holding one another and laughing, when the jocks approached and thrust the TV at Kim. "Sorry to butt in, but you dudes know anything about this guy?"
Kim and Ron were stunned as they watched the broadcast.
IX.
"… recently known as Andrew Drake but more commonly recognized for my awesome genius as Dr. Drakken. Tonight I declare myself Supreme Ruler of the World …"
"… he could have waited till the game was over," the jock said, only to shut up when Kim shot him a withering glance.
"… I shall move into the White House in exactly 12 hours. By that time all world governments will have surrendered to me.
"To assist your soon-to-be-former leaders in capitulating, I have made certain arrangements. Every satellite in orbit, whether commercial, military, or scientific, is now being shadowed by a drone, capable of jamming its systems and even inflicting catastrophic damage. If I so choose, the world's telecommunications and broadcasting networks will be crippled in minutes. I have already issued orders to neutralize all military and Global Justice satellites and have shut down the internet.
"I also am in control of the Drake Star …"
"Oh yeah, Drake Star. That is so derivative." Ron muttered.
Kim reached up and squeezed his arm. She could sense Ron's tension building. She knew how much this night had meant to him, because she knew what it meant to her. She whispered into his ear, "Let's keep our heads in the game."
"… the most potent weapon in the history of mankind. With the Drake Star I am able to destroy any target anywhere in the world from high earth orbit. To prove this, I will eliminate one structure in 30 minutes. This delay is to show that I am a caring and munificent Supreme Ruler of the World, since it will give everyone at the site a chance to flee – and ensure that news crews can be on hand to broadcast the demonstration for your viewing pleasure.
"Since Tex-Mex has given me indigestion ever since an unfortunate incident last year, I have chosen to vaporize the Badical Burrito in Middleton in one half hour.
"And let this be a lesson to you, buffoon – calling me 'Blue Boy' wasn't very nice.
"Tootles."
Kim and Ron had missed the very end of Drakken's broadcast; they were already running for the door. Yori and Hirotaka saw them and followed.
X.
Like any 17 year-old male behind the wheel of a car, Ron had always wondered whether it could actually go as fast as the speedometer suggested. He would have preferred finding out under different circumstances.
He roared out of the school parking lot and was quickly pushing 120 miles an hour; they would reach the Badical Burrito in no time. Still, with the threat of the people in his restaurant being vaporized by Drakken's latest doomsday device, 'no time' didn't seem like time enough.
Kim looked at Ron. She could see he was feeling responsible; she knew that if anybody at BB was hurt he would never forgive himself.
"Ron, you couldn't know that what you said was going to lead to this. I'm sure we'll get there in time …"
He swerved to avoid a turning car; his passengers screamed.
"… as long as you don't get us killed on the way over! Slow down!" Kim was being reminded of just why Ron had to take his road test so many times before he finally got his driver's license and of how reckless a driver he could be. "Ron Stoppable, there are a million things I still want to do with you but dying in this car with you tonight is so NOT one of them!" Kim knew that would get through to him, and it did; she noticed him slow down to a comparatively pedestrian 80 mph.
"Sorry, guys. Look, KP, I just hope that Ned remembered to turn on the TV in the sports corner." Ron had asked Kim to call but the phone circuits were all jammed in the wake of Drakken's broadcast; even the Kimmunicators weren't working.
The tires squealed as Ron pulled into the empty parking lot, which he and Kim took to be a good sign. The foursome ran into the restaurant. With 22 minutes to go, the place was empty save for Ned, who was unscrewing the bolts that fastened Kim and Ron's booth to the floor.
"Ned! What are you doing?" Ron yelled incredulously.
Ned looked up from his work. "Got the last bolt. Come on Ron, we can get this out of here."
"Ned, it's a booth. Yeah, it's got great memories, but it's furniture. You've got to get out. Now!"
"No! This booth is the heart and soul of Bueno Nacho and the Badical Burrito. We have to get it out."
"Let's do it, Ron." Kim said quietly. She looked at Ron in a way that made him understand. Ned was losing it. Removing the booth might be the only way of getting Ned out of the building.
The five of them ran like mad to get the table and the two benches outside and behind a neighboring building. They had less than two minutes to go. By now the neighborhood was thronged with spectators uselessly milling about and TV reporters waiting for something good, preferably involving explosions, to show on their special newscasts.
Ron looked at his car, parked next to the front door. Kim grabbed his hand and squeezed. I'm supposed to be Drakken's arch-foe, she thought, not Ron. He doesn't deserve this.
In one of those weird moments when they seemed to be aware of what the other was thinking, Ron looked at Kim and smiled ruefully. "You know when we get married you have to share everything with me – including your arch-foes."
She looked into his eyes. "Ron ..."
"I love you, too." He leaned in to give her a kiss.
That was interrupted when they heard the crackling in the air. The noise was faint at first, but quickly grew louder. It was the sound of ozone burning as the particle beam laced down from the station 300 miles above. One moment an eerie blue bolt stretched down from the heavens; then it was gone. And with it the building, the statue of Rufus and Ron's car.
Ron sighed. "Well, at least I've still got the Ferret Mobile." He stared at the spot where his restaurant had been moments earlier.
Kim hugged him.
Ned had wandered off, only to be intercepted by Tricia Labowski of the Middleton Evening News.
"Sir, I saw you and some others running out of the restaurant with furniture. You could have been killed. Why did you do it?" she asked as she thrust a microphone into Ned's face.
Ned, still overwhelmed by everything, answered dully. "Ron and Kim. It was their booth. When I had nothing, Ron Stoppable gave me a job, he gave me my life back. I, I wanted to do something for him. He's my only friend."
Kim and Ron, Yori and Hirotaka had joined Ned and the newswoman.
"Ned, as crazy a dude as you are, I'm lucky you're my friend." Ron said, placing a hand on the bespectacled manager's shoulder.
"And Ned, Ron's not your only friend. I am too," Kim said embracing him.
"And we would be proud to call you our friend, as well," Yori said.
"You have the spirit of a true Warrior Hero," Hirotaka added, bowing.
The reporter turned to Kim and Ron. "Do you have anything to say to the public? Ron Stoppable?"
"Yeah," he said wearing his most serious face. "No formerly blue skinned freak is putting me out of business. We're gonna rebuild. Kimarito night will return!"
"Kim Possible?"
Kim stared into the camera and growled, "Drakken, you are so busted. Nobody blows up my boyfriend's restaurant!"
XI.
"See, I told you Princess would want to come after you, Drew. And you didn't think we needed the extra muscle!" Shego said smugly, hooking a thumb back at Bonnie and Fukushima, both of whom sported ruby red mind control chips and wore vacant expressions, before she looked at the new synthodrones. She didn't know why, but she got a kick out of ordering around simulacra of Possible and Stoppable.
"Ah, she may want to come, but how will she get here? We did take the last rocket ship out of Middleton. By the time NASA has a space shuttle ready to go, they will have already painted my name on them." The thought prompted Drakken to let loose an evil laugh.
Shego shook her head. "Drew, I hate to say this, but you can never go wrong in life overestimating what Kimmie can do. This isn't over until you're walking into the Oval Office to the tune of Hail to the Chief and she's wearing the latest in this season's mind control chip fashions. Got it?"
"Oooh, I like that," he said, rubbing his hands together as he began to hum the presidential march. Then, catching the expression on Shego's face, he stopped. "Got it, Shego."
She then turned and smiled. She had this under control. Drew just needed to wait twelve hours and he could hum Hail to the Chief, Stairway to Heaven, or I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts all he wanted.
XII.
The first surprise of the night at the Possible home was one they shared with everybody else on the planet: Drew Lipsky's whack announcement and the uncomfortable feeling that for once he might know what he was doing.
The second surprise came in the form of Frederick, who showed up on their doorstep during the broadcast. The intrepid monkey's escape pod had landed more than 500 miles away and he had had to walk and hitch his way to Middleton. He practically collapsed as the door was opened. James picked him up and brought him to the den where Ann began to examine him. Nana went to get the visitor some water and bananas, which he ate greedily.
After a few moments, Frederick surveyed his surroundings and looked at the humans. He saw Dr. Possible. His mate. An older woman. Two small ones. Then he became agitated. Had he been wrong? Had he made a terrible mistake in coming here? Were they part of what was happening?
"Frederick, what is it?" James asked, concern in his voice.
"Friend Ron. Friend Kim. Where?" he said, speaking with the aid of his monkey-language translator.
"They went to a dance, and I'll assume they're now on the way to Ronald's restaurant to make sure everyone is safe. I'm sure they'll be home soon," Mr. Dr. P answered.
Frederick relaxed a bit, though he was still worried.
"Twins. Space station."
James thought for a moment. Jim and Tim are here. Twins. Friend Ron … Clones? Synthodrones of my Kimmie-cub and Ronald! "Drew is just going too far! Why …" James' rant was interrupted by the doorbell.
XIII.
The third surprise of the night came in the form of one Wade Load, who was at the front door carrying a large soda and a duffel bag.
"Hi, Dr. Possible. Everything's off-line, so I thought I'd come over here. I assume Kim's going to want to talk about the Drakken situation. And maybe it's time for me to go on my first official mission." There was no doubt in Wade's mind that Kim was going to want to go to the space station.
Ann welcomed Wade into the house. She was leading him into the den, when a thought occurred to her.
"Wade, how did you get here so quickly?" Ann Possible had met Wade during one of Team Possible's monthly meetings but had never thought to ask where the young computer genius lived. She wasn't sure that Kim or Ron had, either.
"Oh, that's easy," he replied. "I live two blocks from here."
XIV.
The police were more than happy to give Kim, Ron, Yori and Hirotaka a ride home. As they drove the streets of Middleton, Ron smiled goofily at his companions and said, "Ya know, who would have thought it would come to this? KP and I save the world all those times only to wind up in the back of a police wagon." He sighed melodramatically and added. "Where did we go wrong?"
Yori was the first to respond. "You and your American-style humor, Ron-san. You always find a way to ease the situation with a joke."
Kim leaned her head against Ron's shoulder. Yori was right. How many times had Ron cracked a joke at just the right moment relieving what had been unbearable tension?
"Hey," he said brightly, "it's what the Rondo does, right KP?"
"And you do it so well." Much to his surprise, Kim took his face in her hands and kissed him. "But sometimes, the Kimbo needs to break the tension for her Rondo."
Ron grinned happily, then said, "Boo-yah! Remind me to feel tense more often!"
XV.
They gathered in the den.
Frederick reported on everything he'd seen during his months on the station. He apologized for not contacting anyone sooner, but was told his fears of being detected were valid. And, thanks to Frederick, they now had a current and accurate picture of the situation up in orbit. Unspoken was the group's belief that the monkey had done better than most humans would have under similar circumstances.
The question was how to get to the space station to stop Drakken.
"Well, I'd say we could take The Donald on a test run, but I can't get the matter-antimatter interflux regulators to calibrate properly. Right now, I'm worried the engines will blow."
"We told you to keep it simple …" Tim said.
"… yeah, a fusion reactor would have been just fine …" Jim added.
"… but you had to have state of the art …" Tim continued, making air quotes.
"Now, boys, go easy on your father," their mother cautioned. "How was he supposed to know that his college classmate was going to try to take over the world from outer space before his ship was ready to fly?"
"Dad, if we got you a fusion reactor, would the ship be able to go into space?" Kim asked
"Sure, Kimmie-cub, but it would have to be a small one."
Kim and Ron looked at each other, then nodded. "We'll meet you at the Space Center in thirty," Kim said. "Get our gear and be ready for lift-off, please and thank you."
James looked confused.
"We're getting you a fusion thingie, Dr. P.!" Ron announced.
XVI.
"Ron, I just want to be sure, are you okay? I mean after BB and everything …" Kim asked as they parked Ann's minivan in front of Howell Hall at the College.
"Yeah, I'm fine, KP."
"Ron, be honest with me. I really need to know. This is going to sound selfish, but I need you tonight. All of you. I can't have you bottling things up and getting distracted."
"Kim, look, I'm seriously ripped about what Drakken did to BB, and you know I'm still incredibly bummed about Dad. So maybe curling up with you somewhere and enjoying a good cry would seem like the smart thing for me to do. But I'm riding in a car with the most beautiful, amazing feminina in the world right now. And incredibly enough, she just told me that she needs me. So, if I'm going to deal with whatever anger or sadness I feel, I think what I really need to do is help her by giving Drakken a grande size portion of Diablo Ronshine…"
She watched at Ron's jaw clenched and eyes narrowed. While Ron's body language screamed "anger" he voice was calm, even flat. Kim knew Ron was enraged.
"…I'm tired of him messing with you and with me and with us …" Ron growled as he thought of a year ago and Eric and the threat to his friendship with Kim and Drakken's plays on Kim's confidence. "… Blue Boy is going down."
Kim, taking her boyfriend's hand again, looked at him, knowing that once Ron gave vent to his emotions, he'd eventually relax and be okay. She was now reassured that his head would indeed be in the game.
"KP?"
"Yes, Ron?"
"Thanks," he said, knowing what she'd just done.
"No big."
"Wrong, big. In fact, you are the biggest big there is. Which is not only why I Iove you but why I'm in love with you.
Kim smiled, then blushed in the dark of the car. "You know, you are so sweet, Ron Stoppable." She sat quietly for a moment, squeezing her boyfriend's hand, enjoying the moment. "Okay, let's get that fusion reactor. I don't want to keep Drakken waiting for his grande size order of Diablo Ronshine – or the extra large helping of natural Kimness that gets served up with it."
XVII.
Prof. Hinckley, as expected, was at work at the College. Kim and Ron had stayed in touch with her since their first meeting; she had been thrilled when Ron insisted that she and her grandsons attend the Super Bowl half time show. They now knew that the old woman spent so much time in her lab because it was where she found solace and comfort. Home held memories of what had been and could no longer be. The lab was a place of possibility, where she could still experience the excitement of doing science with Roy.
Professor Hinckley was mildly surprised to see her two young friends on a Saturday night.
"Kim, Ron, what are you doing here?"
"Uh, Prof, don't you know what's going on?" Ron asked.
Hinckley shook her head. She'd been engrossed in her research. Kim filled her in.
"Of course you can use it," Hinckley said as she handed the device to Kim. "Just tell your father to keep it simple next time. I heard what he was trying to do. Matter-Antimatter interflux regulators. Really …"
XVIII.
"Outstanding!" James exclaimed as he fit the small device into the propulsion chamber. The engines began throbbing and the ship's systems switched from battery backup to main power. The Donald was ready to fly.
Nana had taken charge in Kim's absence, making sure that everybody had the equipment they needed, sending Barbara Jo home to get Ron's and Hirotaka's gear while she gathered Kim's and Yori's. When Kim arrived, she shared her ideas for assignments with her granddaughter, who expressed her complete agreement.
Kim then conferred with her father about the station layout and outlined the plan of assault. Nana was to stay behind with the twins and Mrs. Stoppable at Mission Control. Though Jim and Tim were sorely disappointed that they weren't going into outer space, they were mollified when they were told how important the work of Mission Control was, given that the space ship would go into orbit without the assistance of any satellite-based navigational aids. The Donald would eventually have access to data from exactly one satellite – and that was the stealth unit it would deploy after lifting off.
Nobody was quite sure what was going to happen once they left the Earth's atmosphere, but the fact that Drakken had littered the cosmos with satellite-killing devices and a giant ray gun seemed to indicate some shooting might take place. Since no one had ever engaged in space combat before, the fact that James and Wade had each watched and memorized every single episode of Space Passage and its never-ending series of spin-offs made them the natural choices to pilot the ship. Frederick, who was still exhausted from his escape from the station and his trek to Middleton, would be on hand in case of emergency.
Ann insisted on going along, in case anyone was injured. Nana endorsed that idea, recalling how well her daughter-in-law had handled herself on Duff Killigan's blimp. Kim agreed, recalling not only the Super Bowl mission, but also the time she and her mother had gone on a mission together.
Kim and Ron and Yori and Hirotaka would do the hard work. They would be forming the two strike teams that would storm the space station, if James was unable to disable the cannon with The Donald's lasers.
XIX.
"Wade, isolinear gyroscopic stabilizers?"
"Check, Dr. Possible."
"Duotronic framinators?"
"Check."
"Fusion reactor servo-processor relays?"
"Check."
"Seat backs and trays in the upright position?"
Simultaneously, James snapped, "Ronald!" and Kim, now in mission mode, said, "Ron, stop playing around!"
"Heh, heh, sorry." Ron said, looking sheepish.
Seeing he was properly chastened, Kim eventually smiled, blew him a kiss and mouthed "I still love you." He whispered back "Blast off!" and Ann, watching from behind, grinned.
"Main engines engaged?"
"Check."
"Okay, people, let's rock – and – roll!" James called out, filled with excitement, as every childhood rocket fantasy he'd ever had was about to come true.
XX.
"All systems are on-line …" Jim reported, monitoring the screens before him.
"… Telemetry is coming in …" Tim announced.
"… Nana, open the launch bay doors …" Jim said.
"Launch bay door opening sequence has been initiated," their grandmother replied.
Barbara Jo Stoppable watched all of this with amazement. She had socialized casually with the Possibles over the many years that her son and their daughter were friends. She began to get to know them better when the kids started dating, especially after they made their announcement in January, then more so in the wake of Donald's death. But it was only at this moment that she was able to truly appreciate just how brilliant, accomplished, and downright … different … the Possibles were. No wonder Ron had long ago been adopted as a member of the clan and was such a great partner, in every sense of the word, for Kim. Ronnie may not be as book-smart as them, she thought, but "Never be normal" is as apt a slogan for Kim and her family as it is for him.
The doors swung open, revealing a clear night sky. A deafening roar enveloped the hangar as James fired the booster jets, slowly lifting 95 tons of hyper-advanced and completely untested experimental spacecraft into the air.
It took just a few moments for the ship to clear the hangar. James continued to direct the craft straight upwards, as if he were flying a VTOL jet. Once he was confident that he had cleared the surrounding buildings, he began entering a series of commands into the on-board flight computer.
"Wade, have you programmed in the coordinates?"
"Last known coordinates of the space station have been entered into the navigational computer, Dr. Possible."
"Okay, let's see what this baby can do. Ronald?"
"Yeah, Dr. P.?"
"Now's the time to check your seat back and tray table!"
Ron didn't have a chance to respond as he was slammed back into his seat by the rapidly increasing G forces. The Donald Stoppable was rocketing towards its rendezvous in high Earth orbit.
XXI.
Drakken began to rub his hands gleefully as Synthodrone 3001 announced, "Unidentified vehicle approaching outer defense perimeter. Activating defense program Booyah 1."
Shego looked at Drakken. "Booyah 1?"
"It makes the whole defeat-themselves thing so much more enjoyable if they talk like them, don't you think?"
"Whatever," she replied with a roll of the eyes and a grin. She was increasingly willing to indulge Drew tonight; he actually seemed to have executed his part of the scheme competently. "Yo, Kimmie, get me a drink," Shego said, snapping her fingers as she turned to her syntho-Kim, which was still wearing its black-and-green crop top suit.
"Yes, Shego, it would be my pleasure to do that."
Drakken pouted.
"What?" Shego asked.
"I just wish my Kim Possible was as deferential as yours." Synthodrone 3001 may have followed orders, but it was Kim-like in every other way, including its penchant for sass and its ability to make Drakken feel inadequate.
"You're jealous now?" Shego replied. "Wait 'til tomorrow when the real one will be fetching me my refreshments."
Drakken was now even more envious.
Shego smiled and said sweetly, "If you're a good mad scientist, I'll have her get you some cocoa moo."
"Oh, Shego, you know the way to a man's heart!"
XXII.
"Incoming!"
"I'm tracking bogies at …"
"I've computed the vectors …"
Kim listened with fascination as her father and Wade discussed the threat scenario, impressed by their calm demeanors.
Ron looked at Kim. "Uh, KP, you have any idea what they're talking about?"
"Not a clue. I never got into the whole sci-fi thing."
"Don't disrespect the genre!" James and Wade both called back.
"Jinx!" Ron called, looking at Kim and thrusting his fists into the air. "Yess! You owe me a soda."
"I so do not. Jinxes are non-transferable. That one doesn't count."
"Awww. And I finally won."
"But I'll give you a consolation kiss instead …" As Kim began to lean over to Ron, the ship rocked violently. Immediately, safety restraints emerged from their seats, strapping them in place.
"Spankin'!" Kim exclaimed, remembering the way everybody was thrown about on the bridge of the Avenger during her brief appearance on Space Passage.
Ron pouted. "Man, not getting the soda's bad enough. But then kiss denied …"
Kim looked at Ron, both flattered and amazed. "We're under attack and you're more worried about not being kissed?"
"Hey, the Ron-man has his priorities. You are the world's most bon-diggity kisser, KP … Oops, sorry Mrs. Dr. P., I, uh, …"
"Don't worry, Ron, it's okay. You two really are so cute together," she said, giving both Kim and Ron reason to blush.
The ship was being targeted by drone-sats. James was able to jink the ship left, right, up, and down. "This is easy Wade. It's like Episode 42 where Commander Kane flies through the asteroid field."
"Oh yeah, The Corpulon Maneuver. That was a good one! But while those asteroids were sentient, they weren't aggressive." Wade paused. "It looks like they're trying to disable us the way they did the satellites."
"Ronald, you're spending too much time thinking about kissing my daughter. Get up here. Now."
Kim and Ron exchanged glances. Surely her father wasn't going to give Ron the black hole lecture, was he?
Ron pressed the safety restraint release button, got up and made his way forward.
"Okay, Ronald, sit down at that console," James said with a grin that told Ron that he'd just been successfully played. Dr. P pointed to where Frederick was just a moment ago; the monkey made his way back to Ron's seat by Kim. "You see that joystick and the helmet?"
Ron nodded.
"Great. You've just graduated from Zombie Mayhem. Think of this as a big, flying arcade and start blowing things up." James was glad he'd installed light lasers to blast away debris; now at least they had some offensive capability.
"Badical!" Ron exclaimed as he put on the helmet. "Whooaa! This is sooo cool!" Ron was now immersed in a three dimensional head's-up display of the field of battle. He merely had to look at a target to acquire it. Drone-sats began exploding very quickly. "Booyah!"
"We've cleared the satellite field, Dr. Possible." Wade reported. The other drone-sats were too far away to catch up with The Donald.
"Okay, Ronald. On my mark, target the cannon."
Ron acquired his target and waited for James to give the order.
"Now!"
Ron fired. "Oh yeah! Direct hit …!"
But before anyone could celebrate, the cannon began to repair itself.
"I cannot believe this! Drew used the Hephaestus technology on his ray gun," James said in disgust. He sighed, then told Ron that his work was done for the time being.
Ron took off the helmet and James signaled for Frederick to come back forward. "I want him here for docking." Ron got up and returned to his seat.
Kim smiled proudly at him, then pulled him in for a quick kiss. "You're pretty cute, space warrior. Wanna storm a space station with me?"
"I'll have to check my social calendar," Ron said, pretending to be looking at a book, as he retook his seat. "Let's see. Lair at 3:00, Island Redoubt at 4:00, Fortress of Doom at 6:00. I can fit you in at 5:00."
"Spankin'!"
Yori and Hirotaka looked at each other with bemusement. Though their romantic bond had grown strong in recent months, it was one they kept to themselves. They couldn't imagine all of the badinage and public kissing that characterized Kim and Ron's relationship. But they definitely enjoyed watching it.
XXIII.
"Okay, the flying things of death didn't seem to work, Drew. Why not just use the big gun to blow them out of the sky?"
"But Shego, they'll be killed if we do that!"
"Oy, now you're worried about killing people?"
"Well, we've never actually killed anyone, have we?"
"Not for lack of trying," Shego grumbled. He does have a point, though, she thought. Defeat, beat, humiliate, yes. But kill, no. Why ruin a perfect track record? If they live, we can gloat. Besides, I still want to chip Princess. "Well, how about disabling them?" she asked. "Can we do that?"
"That we can most certainly do." Drakken turned to Synthodrone 3001 and gave the order. "Take out their port engine. Now."
XXIV.
"They've got a lock on our port engine, Dr. P!"
"Hang on everyone!" James warned as he began to enter a series of commands. "Make Daddy proud!" He executed a tight, stomach-turning barrel roll that enabled the ship to dodge the particle beam. "Oh, yeahhhhh!"
Kim, who was having a surprisingly good time and thinking she'd like to learn how to fly high-performance aircraft, looked at her now green-hued boyfriend. "Ron, are you okay?"
"Crummy tummy …" he moaned. "Does this thing come with airsickness bags?"
XXV.
Drakken muttered a "Snap!" as he watched the space ship barely evade the particle beam.
"It looks like we may need your muscle, Shego. Deploy the synthodrones."
"I'm on it, Drew."
Shego had hoped they wouldn't reach this point, but she always suspected they would. Kimmie was like a bad chimarito. She just kept coming back to upset you. With this possibility in mind, Shego had already drawn up plans to repulse an assault on the station.
From the outside, the space station looked like a bowling pin; around the widest part of its lower section was a landing platform that circled halfway around the structure. The weapon and other extensions had been attached to the other side of the station.
The interior layout of the structure was simple. Living and working quarters occupied the top two thirds of the station while the main power core, fuel cells and mechanical systems were located in the lower third. One traveled between different decks by using ladders in the two access tubes that stretched from top to bottom of the station.
The station had two airlocks, one on the landing platform level and one towards the apex, where the X Institute rocket was currently moored, which meant that at present there was only one available point of entry into the station. Repelling Princess' boarding party would be easy. All Shego had to do was mass her forces at the lower airlock and wait for Kimmie and crew to show up for their beating.
Before leaving she signaled Synthodrones 3001 and 3002 to join her. "You make sure he stays safe, got it?" she ordered, pointing to Drakken. They nodded. She smiled; Space Station: $5 billion. The idea of Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable guarding Dr. Drakken: Priceless.
XXVI.
"We'll set her down on the landing platform, then lay down covering fire as you make your way to the airlock."
Kim didn't like being that exposed. "Dad, if I were Drakken, that's where I'd be waiting. I bet he'll have a bunch of synthodrones waiting for us. We need to go where they don't expect us. The upper airlock."
"Uh, Kim, what if he expects us to expect that he'll be there and decides to fake us out by waiting at the upper airlock? You know, a trap?" Ron asked.
Kim looked at her boyfriend. She loved him so much, but still wondered if she would ever truly comprehend how his mind worked.
"Ron, what happened the last time you thought Drakken and Shego were going to do something like that?"
Ron shuddered at the thought of the Running of the Apes. "Gotcha, KP. Upper airlock it is."
Yori spoke up. "I do not mean to sound obtuse, but there is an obstacle in our way," she noted as she looked out the cockpit windows at the rocket ship that was moored to their desired point of entry.
Kim thought about that, then asked her father a question.
"Dad, is the cargo bay pressurized?"
"It can be."
"Good," said Kim, "then we can take everybody back on our ship. Which means we can get rid of Yori's obstacle."
"Not so fast, Kimmie-cub. If we blow up the rocket, it will most likely cause an explosion large enough to breach the station's hull, causing a loss of life support …"
"… and killing everyone inside." Kim frowned.
"However," her father said, "if the tunnel between the ship and the airlock were destroyed, the station would automatically seal the airlock door. Think you can do it, Ronald?"
"I believe I can, Dr. P. I did win the Zombie Mayhem V charity game-a-thon this year." Ron looked at Kim and said, "Without cheat codes, I may add!"
Kim, grinned at Ron, who sat down at the weapons console. "Fire away, Game Boy. But make it a clean shot or you don't get the bonus kiss."
Ron rubbed his hands in anticipation, then put the helmet on. "Bonus kiss, here I come. Rondo has come to play!"
XXVII.
"Status report, boys." Nana ordered
"They're approaching the station …" Tim replied.
"… All systems are on-line and operational." Jim added.
Barbara Jo watched the twins and their grandmother work. She had been joined by a nervous little naked mole rat, which she began to absent-mindedly scratch on the head. She heard it squeak, "Rufus?"
"It's okay, Rufina. I'm sure he's okay. They know what they're doing." I cannot believe I am now having conversations with Ronnie's pets, she thought. And I hope I know what I'm talking about.
Barbara Jo was growing increasingly nervous. She knew her son had been on scores of missions before; but this one seemed different. She felt like she was watching her little boy go into combat. But she knew he was no longer a boy, but a man. And all she could do now was pray that he and those he loved returned home safely.
XXVIII.
As Shego made ready to lead her forces to the landing platform airlock, she began to suspect that Kimmie might try to be clever and avoid the easy point of entry to the station. While Shego may have detested Princess, she respected her, knowing her foe could be gutsy. Thus, she decided that she would have to split her forces between the rocket mooring airlock and the landing platform airlock. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more she thought it likely that Kimmie and crew would try to come in by way of the rocket mooring airlock. Shego, confident she could spring a trap on Princess, deployed the majority of her synthodrones to the rocket mooring level. However, just to be safe, she sent mind-controlled Bonnie and Fukushima and a party of synthodrones to the landing platform airlock.
XXXIX.
Shego gave Bonnie her orders. Bonnie couldn't believe her good luck. It took everything she had to conceal her surprise and satisfaction. She was relieved that Fukushima was able to maintain his composure, too. Bonnie watched as Shego led her party of synthodrones away. Her former mentor had just made the implementation of her plan much, much easier.
XXX.
Kim looked at Ron. Even now, she realized, she could occasionally dismiss his ideas without giving them due consideration. Unlearning years of learned behavior was difficult, even when you loved and respected someone.
This wasn't Drakken's lair and they weren't looking at a television set attached to a pan-dimensional vortex inducer. They were looking at a potential ambush. If they went to the wrong door, they could be taken out before they even emerged from the airlock. And Ron, because of his natural Ronness and his time as Zorpox, could far better fathom the convoluted thought processes of the villainous mind. She made a decision.
"Ron's right …"
Surprised, everybody looked at her.
"… We need to spring a trap trap. I think we should still take out the rocket ship as a diversion. We can then use the platform airlock to gain entry. But we'll also need to take out the platform so we can dock the ship with the station and gain direct access to the airlock. Any objections?"
Yori and Hirotaka looked at one another. This wasn't quite what they'd been studying at Yamanuchi.
Kim put her hands on Ron's shoulders and squeezed. "Make it count, Space Warrior."
"You got it, KP."
XXXI.
The station rocked. Then it rocked again. And again. Ron had scored a direct hit to the docking tunnel which attached the rocket to the space station. Then he hit the mooring lines. The rocket ship began to drift away from the station.
XXXII.
Shego lost her balance as the station was hit by the lasers. She pitched into the syntho-Kim and muttered under her breath, "Princess, you are going to pay …" She had known this was a real possibility, but still was not pleased. Regaining her footing, she found a comm switch and contacted the Command Center.
"Drew! What's going on?"
"What do you think, Shego? My teen-aged foe and her buffoon sidekick are firing at us."
"Don't tell me that they're now too close for you to fire on them with the cannon."
Silence.
"Drew?"
"You told me not to tell you …"
"Doy! Okay … hey!" Shego found herself standing in the dark. The lights had gone out.
XXXIII.
Ron targeted the struts that secured the platform to the station and with perfectly aimed blasts destroyed them. The giant surface began to float away from the station. Once there was enough clearance, Wade and James piloted the ship in, perfectly executing a roll that lined up The Donald's hatch with the airlock.
XXXIV.
It took a few moments before the emergency lights came on, bathing the Command Center in an eerie red glow. Drakken surveyed the scene. Synthodrones 3001 and 3002 continued to work as if nothing had happened. While he was grateful for 3001's Possible-like steadiness under duress, he rather wished 3002 would begin cracking some Stoppable-like jokes. Drakken felt that he could use a laugh.
XXXV.
Once The Donald clamped onto the airlock tunnel Kim and Ron readied themselves to move. Yori and Hirotaka stood poised to stop anyone trying to board from the station. The first door opened; the airlock was empty. Kim motioned and Yori and Hirotaka quickly joined them in the chamber. For a moment, they were trapped, confined to the small space. The two minutes that passed before the inner door opened seemed like an eternity. They were not defenseless, however. Team Possible was packing, thanks to the twins.
Tim and Jim had been rooting through their toys the previous fall when they found some old squirt guns. Inspiration hit them simultaneously.
"Why shoot people with streams of water …" Jim asked.
"… When we can hit them with beams of energy?" Tim answered.
They immediately set to work on turning their vision into reality.
Creating actual functioning futuristic weapons took time. There was the need to master the technology, not to mention the imperative to keep their activities hidden from their parents. Ron had had the misfortune of being zapped by a prototype earlier in the year. But with some hard work and some shrewd on-line shopping, the boys found the parts they needed. They had made four of the directed energy weapons, or DEW guns, as they called them, back in March. James, however, soon discovered the pistols. Wanting to reward their initiative and creativity, he offered them a liter of J200 jet fuel for the set; they told him he had a deal. Then wanting to drive home the message that he didn't want them playing with weapons, let alone making them, he grounded them for them a month.
XXXVI.
The four teens divided into two teams: Kim and Ron were Middleton and Yori and Hirotaka were Yamanuchi. Their goals were to apprehend Drakken and Shego, secure the Command Center, and take the particle cannon off-line. The inner door slid open and they tossed smoke grenades into the corridor; then Kim and Ron, followed by Yori and Hirotaka rushed in. They quickly began firing their DEW guns at the few shadowy figures and watched them fall to the deck. Then they split up, taking different routes to increase the odds of someone reaching the ultimate destination.
Yori and Hirotaka ran down the corridor towards the access tube that they planned to use to climb to the Command Center deck. They were relieved, if a mite surprised, that they encountered no opposition. They found the hatch they wanted and climbed through. They were almost at their destination when they saw synthodrones accompanied by Shego emerge through a hatch and begin coming down the ladder. The two young ninjas began firing, and hit some of the synthodrones. But Shego then began hurling plasma bolts at them, forcing Yori and Hirotaka to retreat down the shaft. They exited through another hatch, ran down a corridor and assumed defensive positions.
Synthodrones began to emerge, followed by Shego, who quickly dropped to the deck. She was followed by yet more synthodrones. Shego rolled, jumped up, fired up her plasma and began hurling carefully aimed bolts at Yori and Hirotaka who were able to get off a few shots at the synthodrones, before Shego hit their gun hands in quick succession. She could have taken them out, but decided it would be more fun to toy with them.
Yori and Hirotaka dropped their DEW guns and, before they could retrieve them, she began throwing bolts again, quickly incinerating the weapons. The two ninjas, knowing the space was confined, realized that they had no choice but to retreat and regroup.
"Run, little ninjas! Run!" Shego taunted as she sent her synthodrones after them. She was needed elsewhere, and was confident that superior numbers would ultimately overcome the Japanese teens' skills. She made her way back to the access tube; there, lying by the hatch, was the syntho-Kim, staring vacantly at the ceiling, a large burn in the middle of her torso, clearly disabled and off-line.
Shego looked at the simulacrum for a moment. So, this is what Kimmie might look like if I ever …, she mused. For just a second, she felt a pang of sympathy. Shego couldn't stand Kim Possible. But the red headed teen was the most worthy adversary she had. Disgusted with herself, she dismissed the feeling with a shake of the head. You're getting soft Shego; keep focused – you're almost across the finish line. World domination is within your grasp.
Still, just as she was about to make her way through the hatch to the ladder, she knelt down and closed the synthodrone's eyes.
XXXVII.
Yori and Hirotaka were fighting furiously; they were good, but they were confronted by a very large of number of synthodrones with advanced martial arts programming. Yori pulled out her communications device. "Donald, this is Yamanuchi …"
"Come in Yamanuchi, this is The Donald," Wade replied.
"We've encountered unexpectedly heavy … traffic. Please let Middleton know that we will be delayed in reaching our destination."
"Over Yamanuchi. Will do."
Yori and Hirotaka continued the battle. As long as these synthodrones were busy, they would not be able to reinforce the Command Center or attack the ship.
XXXVIII.
They crawled along the ventilation shaft; Kim and Ron, having received the message about Yori and Hirotaka, had altered their plan now that they knew there were bands of synthodrones prowling the station. The trip was slow-going, but they reached their destination. They peered down into the Command Center, seeing Drakken and their doppelgangers. They knew they'd have to do this the hard way. James had told them that the one place on the station they could not risk using the DEW guns was the Command Center, lest they inadvertently hit a critical control system like life support.
Ron, sensing the tension, decided a little humor was in order. Pointing at the synthodrone Ron, he whispered into Kim's ear, "Accept no imitations!" then winked.
Kim rolled her eyes, then smiled affectionately, then replied, "You ready, Ninja Boy?"
He nodded.
"Rufus?" she asked.
The naked mole rat poked out of Ron's pocket and nodded, too.
"Okay boys, let's go!"
They quietly removed the grille, then dropped down to the floor.
"Kim Possible!" Drakken yelled.
"Nice to see you, too, Supreme Ruler," she replied sarcastically.
"Well, I am!" he whined.
"You are so not," Kim retorted.
Rufus quietly slipped out of Ron's pocket and scampered off.
"Get them!" he ordered. Synthodrones 3001 and 3002 paired off with Ron and Kim respectively and prepared to attack. Ron looked to Kim and asked, "You mind if I deal with this? This is really freaking me out."
"Be my guest," she said, as they and their opponents warily circled one another.
"Thanks, KP. You might want to look the other way …"
Kim seemed surprised.
"… Trust me." Ron had flashbacks to the previous summer. He still had weird dreams about killing the syntho-Ron. Once Kim did as he suggested, he whipped out the Kimstick and converted it to a sword. He took a deep breath, then brought the sword up with a broad stroke, and cut Kim's duplicate in two. What he'd just done made him want to retch, but he controlled himself. Still, he knew he'd be having new nightmares in the weeks to come. Meanwhile, Kim was drawn away from Ron and was now fighting the duplicate Ron.
"I'm coming Kim!" he called to her.
"Please and thank you. I don't mind the others, but I really don't like fighting with you," she said, remembering Valentine's Day.
Ron grabbed a railing and vaulted himself over to where Kim and Synthodrone 3002 were fighting. "Look away, KP!" Ron advised before saying to his simulacrum, "Sorry, dude, but this is over," as he struck it down.
Kim looked around at the empty Command Center. "Okay, Drakken, it's time to surrender!"
"I think not, Kimberly Ann," he said with a wicked grin. The door opened behind him and more synthodrones, led by Shego, spilled into the area. Shego surveyed the room, obviously looking for someone or something that wasn't there, then turned her attention to Kim and Ron.
"Nice of you to visit, Princess. You, too, Stoppable. You've saved me a trip. I can give you your mind control chips before we leave!" she said bringing up her plasma-enveloped hands.
"I don't think so, Shego," Kim said, dropping into a fighting stance, Ron doing the same at her back. "Mind control is so last season."
"Can you two dispense with the banter anjd just get on it with it?" a testy Drakken asked.
A momentarily surprised Kim and Shego both looked at the would-be world conqueror and shrugged.
"Whatever …" Shego said.
"Thank you," Drakken said before thrusting out his arm and pointing at Kim. "Attack!" he ordered, and the troops complied.
As Kim and Ron did battle with the synthodrones, Shego made her way to Drakken. "Have you seen the cheerleader and the crazy ninja?"
"No, Shego, I haven't. I thought you had them chipped?"
"I did. That creep Bortel must have sold me defective goods." Shego had seen too many of Drew's inventions malfunction to not be aware of the potential for equipment failure. She couldn't believe that she hadn't planned for this contingency. "He's going to be in big trouble!"
"Where do you think they are?" Drakken asked.
Shego thought for a moment. There were two possibilities. "Hiding or betraying us," she said, wondering if the cheerleader actually had it in her to turn on her.
Her reverie was broken by a computerized voice. "Escape Pod Beta has been launched." She looked at the console and checked the data readings. There was no video feed to consult, so she couldn't be sure. But she suspected she knew where Bonnie and Fukushima were. They'd just abandoned ship. Shego was disappointed that her protégé would succumb to cowardice, almost wishing that the teenager had turned treacherous. For as many unwanted complications as that would present, at least Shego could have felt she'd been a successful mentor.
XXXIX.
Kim and Ron had almost defeated the synthodrones when Yori and Hirotaka arrived. The two Yamanuchi students reported that all of the other synthodrones on the station had been bested, then joined Kim and Ron in quickly dispatching those that remained.
"It's over, Blue Boy, time to give up," Ron said after Kim knocked down the last of the synthodrones with a roundhouse kick.
"Aaargh! Stop calling me that! It makes me feel so … blue … inside!"
Kim and Shego exchanged looks. "I'm not going quietly, Kimmie."
"Shego, be sensible. Maybe you can handle me. But the four of us? You're smarter than that. It's over."
"I don't think so!" she took up a position between Kim and Drakken and raised her glowing hands. "Drew, why don't you target something else, say Middleton High."
That drew stunned looks from the four teens; Yamanuchi's existence was supposed to be a secret.
"You wouldn't ..." Kim said.
"You really want to find out, Princess?" Shego replied.
"The coordinates have been entered, Shego," Drakken announced, a look of satisfaction on his face. Then the emergency lights went out, casting the Command Center into darkness.
XXXX.
Neither Shego nor Drakken knew what hit them as they were both knocked down. They had been taken completely by surprise. While Kim and Ron had been battling the synthodrones, Rufus had been busy locating the power switch. He had just cut all the lights. Moments later, they came back on.
"It's over Drakken," Kim said as she tied her arch-foe's hands behind her back. Shego grimaced, having once again been defeated by Kim Possible. Kim was surprised by how deflated Drakken was. Rather than rant, he just stared vacantly at nothing in particular.
After Drakken and Shego had been secured, Kim found the cannon control panel and began the process of deactivating the system. It was a two person job, with one person needing to go to the lower decks. "I'm on it, Kim," Ron said.
"Okay, but hurry up. You still owe me that slow dance!"
"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Ron said, giving Kim a peck on the cheek.
Shego looked at the two teens. Yori was surprised. She thought she detected envy – and wistfulness – in the supervillainess's eyes.
XXXXI.
"All done, KP, I'll be at the ship in a couple of minutes." Ron said into his comm device as he began climbing the access ladder.
Kim, Yori, and Hirotaka had already returned to The Donald. Kim and Ron agreed that it made sense to rendezvous back there; Drakken and Shego needed to be secured for the ride home as quickly as possible and the necessary equipment was located on the ship.
A few moments later, Wade looked at his monitor with concern.
"What is it Wade?" James asked.
"I don't get this. The cannon is powering up again …"
The comm link beeped. It was Nana. "You'd better watch this," she said. "It's another broadcast."
Everyone gathered round the monitor.
"Hi, my name's Bonnie Rockwaller, though tomorrow you can start calling me either Queen Bonnie or President Rockwaller; I haven't decided. Anyway, I'm up here in orbit on, like, the Drake Star with that really freaky ray gun. Basically, same plan, new management.
"Oh, I found out something really interesting about the gun. It can fire a really focused beam and blow up some loser's fast food joint. Or it can be set on a wide spread and take out an entire city!
"Anyway, you've got until 9:00 tomorrow morning to surrender. Otherwise, it's buh bye, Tri-City area. It really is so last season," she said with a disdainful roll of the eyes. "Oh, and one last thing. K, I've got something of yours. You can come and get him if you want. Just don't bring your ninja friends, as much as I'd like to kick their butts. Otherwise your little loser boyfriend might find out what it's like to leave an airlock without a space suit."
"Oh my God, no …" Kim gasped, bringing her hands up to her mouth as the camera shifted from Bonnie to the bound, injured, and unconscious figure of Ron Stoppable.
TBC …