Well, the moment is finally upon us.
The end of the Horrors of War Kim Possible story, there have been many unexpected turns in writing this story as well as last second additions that just seemed to fit (Josh going insane was one of those).
I'd like to thank all of you who have left me reviews, and all of you who have read the story.
Special thanks to;
Surfrost, Matt-Robinette, triods, Burpadski, Zoko, Taechunsa (especially you), and recon288.
The final chapter.
Horrors of War
Chapter 14
Honoring the Fallen
The crisp autumn air blew threw Kim's hair as she made her way to her location, her head down, flowers in her hand.
She didn't want to be here, but if it wasn't for him she might not be around.
Kim stopped when she reached a freshly filled in burial plot with tombstone.
Why did he do what he did? Why did he force my hand?
Kim sighed as she looked down at the tombstone, she didn't go to the funeral. Too much pain, and too awkward for her, being as she was responsible for his death.
Kim felt a hand gently rest on her shoulder, Kim winced a little as she was still recovering from the bullet wound she received from Josh two weeks before.
"Its ok KP, it's just me" said a voice that could belong to no other.
Kim looked over her shoulder, looking right into Ron Stoppables big brown eyes.
In his left hand was a cane, which he unfortunately needed for another month after what happened to his left leg.
"You don't want to really be here do you?" Ron asked, looking into Kim's green eyes.
"No, it just feels so wrong for me, US to be here" Kim said as she moved to Ron's side, he draped his arm around her.
"I know Kim, but if it wasn't for him, I might not be here" Ron said.
"But if he lived then you would definitely not be here!" Kim protested, before she realized the bitterness in her voice.
"True, but if it wasn't for him I'd have gone completely insane over there, then I would have been lost to you forever" Ron said.
Kim rested her head on Ron's shoulder, he was right and she knew it.
The day they got back was a day full of life changing events that neither of them really wanted to deal with.
Josh attempting to murder Ron while the Global Justice agents dicked around with loading Drakken and Shego into a police van, Kim getting shot by Josh, Kim killing Josh, and Kim almost losing Ron.
It was a very climactic day to say the least.
Ron was in the hospital for a week and a half after that day, getting his leg repaired and getting psychiatric help for some of the things he did over there, Kim also went through the same therapy for her actions in the memorial.
And there they stood, Together, defying all odds of them coming back at all.
They both looked down at the tombstone and read it silently to themselves
Joshua Mankey
April 23, 1988-October 12, 2006
A friend, An Artist, A Hero
Will be missed by All
Ron looked over at Kim who was still resting her head on his shoulder; her hands still had the flowers in them.
"Kim?" Ron said, getting her attention.
Ron pointed to the bouquet of flowers in her hand.
"Oh, right" Kim said as she realized she still had them in her hands.
Kim walked slowly out from under Ron's arm, making her way to the grave.
Kim knelt down and placed the flowers at the base of the tombstone.
"I'm sorry it had to end this way Josh" Kim said as she felt the tears fill her eyes.
Ron hung his head low as Kim placed the flowers at Josh's tombstone.
Even though Ron never liked Josh in the first place, he still felt sad that it had to come to this.
Ron remembered Josh's last words
"I'm not supposed to die"
Those words haunted Ron's subconscious from that time on.
He wasn't supposed to die; his name was never on the wall.
In fact none of them were supposed to die, but that question was still left unanswered.
Ron heard a car pull up behind them; Ron turned around and looked at the small access road in the cemetery.
Sure enough, behind Kim's car pulled up a black Town Car.
Ron continued to stare as the back passenger door opened, and its passenger came out.
Upon seeing what the person was dressed in Ron felt very weak all of a sudden, his breath became short.
He put his free hand on the top of a nearby tombstone to balance himself as tears filled up his eyes.
"Kim!" Ron called out, all the while never taking his eyes off the approaching figure.
"Ron? What's the matter?" Kim asked as she rushed to his side.
Kim looked into his face, Ron wouldn't look at her.
He just kept staring straight out towards the access road.
Kim turned to see what Ron was looking at.
The figure was in full military dress; on his arm was a Corporal insignia
Kim immediately brought her hands up covering her nose and mouth as her eyes filled up with tears; she let out a little shriek.
Ret. Corporal Jim Wilson was surprised at the sight of the two teens as he approached them.
Jim felt tears in his eyes as he got closer; both teens were on the verge of collapsing on the sight of him.
Guess they did miss me
Jim had aged from the last time he saw the two of them, he had a wife and 2 kids, not to mention the grand kids he had.
Jim ran a hand through his graying brown hair as he stopped a short distance from the two of them.
An awkward silence came over the area as they all stood there, in shock of what was happening.
"Hello, Lt Possible, Sgt. Stoppable" Jim managed to say as the tears flowed from his eyes.
Before he knew it Jim was enveloped by both teens as they got him in a group hug.
The emotion was over whelming everyone as it seemed they all stood there holding each other for what seemed like eternity.
Slowly they broke the hug and all three whipped their eyes.
"How'd you get here?" Kim asked looking over Jim.
"Your friend Wade contacted me yesterday and gave me a ride over here" Jim said as he laughed.
"It took me so long to find out if you guys actually made it out of there, I didn't find out till I heard of you two going out to save the World" Jim said as he cried.
Ron and Kim both looked at each other, neither of them thought about what Jim had to go through for the past 30 years. Not knowing if his friends had made it out alive or not, now he had closure, which they felt was better late than never.
Jim looked over at the tombstone before he spoke.
"How did it happen?" He asked motioning over at the tombstone.
Both teens sighed, Ron started
"We just had the portal opened, Josh and I were the last ones to go through when he said something to me" Ron shuddered as Joshes words echoed through his mind.
"I turned back and I see Josh standing there with a Knife in his hand, ready to strike at me, only a NVA rolled in a grenade that Josh tripped over. He caught most of the blast, I got some shrapnel in my leg and we both went through the portal"
Ron rubbed his face as the events of that day played over in his head.
Kim picked up where Ron left off
"I saw both of them come through the Portal, Ron screamed out because Josh was able to drive his knife into Ron's thigh. Ron was able to pull away, and Josh started to get up. He had his gun in his hand"
Kim paused as she was overcome by emotion, eventually she continued
"I tried to stop him, then he shot me" Kim's hand went over the spot just below her left shoulder
"So I shot back"
Kim buried her face into her hands as she began to cry again, Ron wrapped his arm around her.
Jim looked down at the tombstone
"He couldn't be saved Kim" Jim said
Both teens slowly nodded their heads.
Jim pulled out something from his pocket, it glinted in the sun.
Jim looked over the object before he placed it on top of Joshes tombstone
Kim and Ron watched with curiosity, Jim sensed they would and began to explain.
"Distinguished Service Cross, All three of you were to get one, as well as a Purple Heart for you Kim."
Jim turned around, in his hands were 5 medals, 2 were the distinguished service cross, 1 was the Purple heart, but the other two were a mystery to the two teens.
"These are Silver Stars, awarded for gallantry in action against an enemy of the United States while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force. Directly from the Military code book"
Jim presented the medals to the teens, who reluctantly accepted the medals.
"Jim, we don't know what to say" Ron said tearing up again.
Jim held his hand up.
"Just do one thing for me"
Both teens nodded
"Promise me that you will live each day to your fullest, together. For the short time I knew you two you have both proven your determination you had for each other. Don't let that determination dwindle, you two were meant to be together. Can you promise me that?"
Ron and Kim both looked at each other.
After all they went through together, neither could think of being without the other for the rest of their lives.
"Yes, yes we can"
Kim brought her lips up and met Ron's, the two stayed that way for quiet some time.
Jim silently started walking back to the waiting Town Car, he didn't want to intrude on them now; he got the answer he was looking for. Even though he already knew what the answer would be he just wanted to make sure.
"Jim!" Kim called
Jim turned back to see the two of them rushing over to him again, well Ron hobbled as he still had the cane.
"You're going already?" Kim asked with a concerned voice
"I got what I came here for, you two go about your lives. If you need me, your computer buddy knows where to reach me" Jim said smiling
Kim embraced him in a hug.
Ron also gave Jim a hug.
"We'll never forget you Jim, ever" Ron said as he watched Jim climb into the Town Car.
"And I'll never forget you two. Remember all of us, who've served this country proudly. And remember those that never made it back, Honor them, Remember them"
Ron snapped to attention, he brought his hand up in a Salute as tears fell from his eyes.
Kim followed Ron and also gave Jim a salute.
"We will never forget them Corporal" Kim said, fighting the tears
Jim returned the salute from the back of the Town Car.
"Godspeed guys" Jim said as the Town Car pulled away.
Kim and Ron watched as it vanished over the horizon, both still arm in arm.
"We have one more place to visit Ron" Kim finally said as she walked to the car.
Ron simply nodded; he knew where they were going.
Middleton Vietnam Memorial
Kim and Ron entered the memorial; neither had been back here since they returned.
All evidence of the portal, their return, and Josh's death were all erased from the memorial.
Kim and Ron made their way around the memorial to the panel that started it all, the one that Ron had initially seen Kim's name on.
Both stared at the panel, not much had changed.
Their names were still on it as well as Drakken and Shego's, the only addition was way down at the bottom of the panel. A spot that Ron didn't look at initially as he was focused of the grouping of familiar names with his and Kim's
Josh's name was at the bottom of the panel.
"Ron, was that there the entire time?" Kim asked looking over at Ron.
"I don't know Kim" Ron said as he brushed his hand over the engraved name.
Both teens stepped back and assessed the wall in front of them.
Hundreds of thousands of names were in front of them, as well as around their names.
"God, this is overwhelming" Kim said as she rested her head on Ron's shoulder.
Ron just stared at the panel.
"All these people, dead from a War we never wanted to be in. And what they had to do to survive, its just…." Kim trailed off as she blinked her eyes, keeping herself from crying again.
"That's the Horrors of War Kim; you do things you never ever wanted to do, just to keep yourself or the guy next to you alive for a little bit longer." Ron said.
"But they never got welcomed back either! They were spit on, called names!" Kim said, tears were flowing again as she thought back on everything she knew about the war.
"People said that then, but now we all remember and honor them for their sacrifices they made, for their country" Ron said as he brushed Kim's hair.
The two stood there looking at the panels around them, thinking about all they went through. They were lucky in that they were able to survive, yet they were surrounded by those who weren't so lucky.
Those who may not be on the walls around them if they never went to war in the first place, but they fought gallantly for their country, even if they didn't agree with why they were there.
The words Jim spoke echoed through the night, surrounding the couple as they made their way out of the memorial.
"………Honor them, Remember them…"
Didn't realize that I finished this on Veterans day, well 10 minutes off, A fitting end to the story and a fitting time for me to wrap it up.
Thanks to all those who have or are currently serving this country of ours, past or present.
I hope you have enjoyed this story as much as I have enjoyed writing it, I like many other writers on here have many more stories in me, this is the first that I've gotten any real recognition for. And I have all of you to thank for that.
"You don't have to go home but you can't stay here, so till next time"
"Move'em on, head'em up, Head'em up, move'em on, Move'em on, head'em up, Raw Hide!"
"Call'em out, ridem in, Ridem in, Call'em out, Call'em out! Ride'em in Raw Hide!" -Bluesbrothers