Trio
Chapter 9
Loss
"Intersection coming up." Shego shouted from ahead of Ron. "Which way?"
Dr. Director who was still bouncing around on Ron's shoulder tried to get some sense of where they were in the giant Global Justice complex but to be perfectly honest, she was as lost as any of them.
"Who laid out the floor plan for this place?" Ron growled in annoyance. "I almost expect to run into a Minotaur in here or a lost archeologist."
"The base was deliberately laid out to be confusing in case it was ever invaded." Dr. Director explained.
"Great." Shego snorted as she ran. "Did you ever make any plans on what to do if it was your own people doing the invading?"
"Ron! The things behind us are gaining." Kim who was on Ron's other shoulder shouted.
"Which way!" Shego shouted again as the intersection was almost upon them. "Go straight, left or right?"
"Right!" Ron shouted.
Shego bounded down the corridor and ducked into the passage on the right. She slowed down just enough for Ron to catch up with her. Panting she asked.
"You know where you are going?"
"Not a clue." Ron admitted.
"Then why right?"
"Because I could just see if I had said left and you had repeated it and I had replied right, we would have ended up going in different directions. At least saying right at the beginning you would know I meant the direction and not just saying correct."
Shego cut her eyes around to glance at Ron but then shrugged. Since they were all lost in the maze of corridors, Ron's way was good as any. Looking forward she frowned.
"Ron, the hallway ends up ahead."
Both of them without slowing in their flight glanced behind them and saw the hallway was filled with the running, stumbling creatures behind them.
"Crap." Ron said clearly.
Dr. Director managing to get a good clear look at the passage ahead of them when Ron turned to look backwards breathed a sigh of relief. The rapidly approaching dead end had a bright yellow radiation warning sign in the middle of the wall.
"This is actually perfect. That wall is false. There is an emergency staircase behind it. Just press on the sign for a count of two, remove your hand and wait for a count of three and then hold your hand on it for a count of…"
"Screw it!" Shego shouted and threw a plasma fireball blowing the fake wall apart revealing the narrow staircase behind it.
"Shego!" Dr. Director hissed at her. "The false wall might have slowed our enemies down while they tried to figure out how to open it."
"And that complicated combination lock you were describing could have slowed us down enough that we ended up as monster chow!" Shego yelled back.
Shego bolted into the secret stairwell followed closely by Ron. Ron turning sat Kim and Dr. Director down and holding up a hand summoned a ball of his own Mystical Monkey blue energy and threw it at the ceiling of the corridor just outside the stairwell entrance. The ceiling exploded raining debris down temporarily blocking the entrance to the stairs.
The group ran up the stairs but to Shego's vast annoyance found out they only went up one flight.
"Another precaution in case an enemy found the hidden stairs. Each one only goes up one flight and then you have to switch to another set of stairs at the other end of the complex to go up to the next level." Dr. Director explained.
"All this switching from stairs to stairs, I swear Global Justice is crazier than even Dr. D. was. What do you do in case of an emergency like a fire or earthquake or something?" Shego asked shaking her head.
"We do have normal stairs. These are only used when someone has invaded the base and personnel can't reach the normal stairs." Dr. Director told her annoyed. She walked up to the blank wall that was closing at the end of the stairs and held her hand to the center of the wall for a moment, pulled her hand away, waited and then held her hand against the wall for several long moments. The wall silently slid open revealing a corridor just like the one they had just left one flight below them.
After Shego, Ron, Kim and Dr. Director entered the new level's corridor, Dr. Director pressed on a spot on the side wall and the door/wall slid shut sealing off the stairwell.
"See? Now when those creatures get to the top of the stairs they will have no idea how to open the door and we will gain some valuable time."
Shego too tired to argue just slid down the side wall she was leaning on and panted. "We can take a rest then as we try to decide what to do next." She managed to say between breaths.
Ron leaned tiredly on the opposite wall from Shego while a rested Dr. Director and Kim having ridden on Ron's shoulder moved farther up the corridor. "Dr. Director? Do you know which elevator we were in that was sent crashing to the basement? Do you know where it is in regards to where we are at now?"
Dr. Director turning looked at the radiation warning on the closed stairwell wall/door. "Yes. I got turned around during our run but each of the secret stairwell doors has a unique mistake on the warning labels. This one here says 'Raydiation Warning instead of course Radiation Warning. That means we are on level 13 on the east side of the complex. That means the elevator that was crashed is down this corridor and then turn left and go past three intersections and then turn right. You'll see the elevator doors at the end of that hallway. Why?"
"We still need to get to the Necronomicon located at Containment and Research. Climbing down the elevator shaft is the fastest way to get there and hopefully the Deadites won't think to guard a crashed elevator shaft."
Dr. Director nodded her head.
Suddenly the door to the hidden stairwell slid open to reveal… A portly balding man with black spider web marks across his face. His milky white eyes stared at Dr. Director. A gravely voice that sounded nothing like Oracle spoke.
"Are you forgetting that the confusing layout and hidden exits of this base were my ideas Dr. Director?"
Before anyone could react Oracle/Deadite threw itself at the nearest person to the secret staircase entrance. Shego resting on the floor.
Landing on its round belly the creature managed to grab Shego's arm and pulling the arm to its mouth sank it's teeth deeply in before Shego kicked out sending the creature back through the doorway to tumble down the stairs.
"Shego!" Ron shouted in horror. Once again flinging one of his Mystical Monkey powered energy balls he destroyed the stairwell entrance. Grabbing up the shocked Shego he tore off down the corridor with Kim and Dr. Director running behind him. Reaching an intersection Ron stopped and looked back the way they came and not seeing anything following them he paused and lowered Shego to the floor gently.
Kim was instantly by Shego's side. "You said your metabolism that lets you throw plasma around burns out chemicals maybe it will do the same thing with whatever these creatures do to infect others?" Kim asked desperately.
Shego looked down at the bite mark on her arm. It was inflamed and a deeper shade of green than her normal skin. Black spidery lines had already radiated out from the bite mark and were covering her entire arm.
"Um, I don't think so princess. As a matter of fact I think my body is spreading this stuff even faster than a normal human." Shego said as she started to shake as if she was cold.
Ron was doing his own shaking but not from cold but fear. "Shego, you, Kim and I are to grow old together. Rocking chairs, Viagra, remember? Fight it!"
"I'm trying Ronnie really I am!" Shego said sounding like a frightened little girl. She let out a shuddering sigh and then coughed. "I knew it. Every time I want something so badly it never works out." Shego coughed several more times and it was obvious to all of them watching that the black streaks were spreading rapidly over Shego's entire body.
Ron looking around frantically spotted a fire house behind a glass door on one of the walls and smashing the glass he quickly pulled several yards of the hose out.
A fire hose is very tough material. It is meant to withstand internal pressures from water and to resist tearing or being cut. It is also resistant to high temperatures.
Ron snapped through the fire hose as if it was mere twine. Returning to Shego's side he quickly started tying her legs together and then her arms to her side using the fire hose.
Shego her head lolling to the side managed to regain enough control to look up at him.
"Um Ron? While I heartily encourage you to explore your kinky side, do you really think this is the right time?"
"A Deadite bite doesn't kill the person bit; it just turns them into one of those creatures." Ron replied trying to hold back the tears that were leaking out of his eyes. "Anything that can be done can be undone. I'm just going to tie you up so you don't hurt Dr. Director, Kim or me until I can find a way to stop this."
The black lines were spreading up Shego's neck and it was obvious she didn't have much time left before her face was covered.
"Ronnie…" Shego hoarsely whispered.
"Yes Shego?" Ron asked lowering his head to her lips to hear her.
"Ronnie… I just wanted to tell you… To tell you…"
Suddenly her voice deepened and became gravely. "That I'm going to swallow your SOUL!" She suddenly shouted and jerking her head up tried to bite Ron's ear before he could pull it away.
Ron pulled away so quickly he tripped backwards and landed on his butt against the wall. He managed to keep Shego/Deadite from biting him but the urge to sob in loss was so great he didn't know if he could stand it. He could see tears streaming unabashedly down Kim's face as she held on to the now snarling and growling creature lying on the floor tied up with the fire hose.
Hearing a noise from one of the corridors in the intersection, Ron exhaustedly pulled himself over prepared to face another Deadite creature. However, what he saw was a square jawed man with scratches on his face dressed in blue Levis and a denim shirt striding rapidly towards him. The man didn't pause or even glance in Ron's direction but spotting the snarling Shego/Deadite on the ground he pulled with a well practiced swing a double barreled shotgun from a scabbard on his back and brought the weapon around till the business end was firmly pressed against Shego/Deadite's nose.
He moved so quickly and decisively Kim didn't have time to try and prevent it.
"Go to Hell She-bitch!" The man said as his finger started to tighten on the triggers.