Chapter IV: The Unlikely Guardian

Earlier, Nathan Aries was trying to gather the courage to ask Tara out. Since being assigned to them, Nathan has immediately taken in by her beauty. But he was a professional. He merely paused for a second to study her features and memorized them. He could ogle her later in his dreams.

The first time he saw her was at the airport. Mr. Nakasumi asked him to watch over them as their Transporter. Rarely was he called that. To the rest he was just a driver. He also used to pilot for Mr. Nakasumi before he asked him to take care of the two ladies.

Though mystified by the request, Nathan was grateful since he had the chance to see Tara everyday.

When he left Ron at the entrance lobby, he immediately parked in the underground parking and waited. But while he was waiting, it seemed to be a good idea to practice what he was going to say.

"Okay Nate, calm down," he said to himself as he breathed to lower his heart rate. "It's just a question. It's a simple question. Nothing to be afraid about." Nathan finally gave up before he burned out with worry. He lied down on the front seat and sighed. "It's just a question," he assured himself. "Just a question you've been dying to ask her for the last two years!" He was finally frustrated and sighed his nervousness. Nathan knew that he had a chance otherwise he would not even think about the possibilities. Though she thought he wouldn't notice, Tara was looking at him in a way that made his heart race. Even in the car, she looked at his eyes through the rearview mirror.

Truth be told, he didn't need to see that she was looking at him for he could feel her gaze touching him. For some unknown reason, they were aware of each other in such away that they knew whenever they were near. It was like they were expecting each other at that moment in time. Nathan wasn't complaining. Sometime, he could have sworn that she knew how he was feeling.

That unnerved him. If his emotions were no longer private, how could he hide from her? But then again, he stopped hiding from her a long time ago.

The phone suddenly rang. Nathan gratefully thanked whichever divinity for the interruption of his thoughts.

"Hey Nathan," Ron's voice came from the receiver. Nathan smiled when he heard the man's voice. He liked the guy and wished he could do something to elevate his spirits.

"Hey boss," Nathan said, showing his delight in hearing from him. "How's it hanging?"

"Okay, I guess," Ron said. From his tone, Nathan knew something was up. "Met up with an old friend. Know Bonnie Rockweller?"

"Know her? She's my regular," Nathan said in surprise. He thought back, trying to recall if his regular had said anything about Ron. The only thing came to mind was when Bonnie called someone a cold hearted user for using her boyfriend, tricking him into believing that she loved him. He wondered why she had such spite towards this woman. Nathan rightly assumed that it was about Ron.

"Then you have the hots for Tara?" Ron teased. Nathan froze. How the hell did he figure that out? Was it blatantly obvious? He felt his cheeks burn in embarrassment. If someone he just met figured it out, what about the others he knew longer? Like perhaps Tara? "Anyway, Mr. Nakasumi's not here and there are only two… three people I know in this building." Nathan was thankful that he didn't pursue the previous line of questioning.

"Ready to leave?" Nathan asked, trying to embarrass Ron. "Or are you feeling lucky?" However, he didn't get an answer. The line was suddenly disconnected and all he heard was silence. Then the phone suddenly buzzed, giving off a busy signal.

This was strange. Nathan looked at phone to see if it was broken. However, everything seemed to be in order then that meant that the line was disconnected at Ron's end. Normally, one would assume that Ron merely hung up but Nathan was not given the job he had for thinking normally. His creed; assume the worst until proven otherwise. Though this gave him the image of being paranoid it suited him well in situations before.

However, he was going to wait. If this were just a glitch or a mistake, it would be remedied in a short while. If not…

About thirty minutes later, the fire alarm rang and then suddenly, it was turned off. Something was not right. What was that about twice it was coincidence? Nathan didn't like it. Sure, maybe there were glitches throughout the building but then again, not bloody likely.

Deciding to check it out, Nathan started the car and proceeded towards the basement elevators. With its Nakasumi hybrid engine, the limo rolled quietly through the car park. His suspicions grew when he saw the car park's gates closed. They weren't supposed to be closed until 2 a.m.. Something was definitely wrong.

Rolling up near the guard station, Nate frowned when he saw blood smears on the floor. Cursing, he immediately picked up the phone and dialed. When the other side of the line picked up, he said without preamble, "77215. Security breach at Nakasumi Plaza. Code Red. Takeover." He cut off the line and replaced the phone. When he looked up, his heart stopped when he found two men with machineguns aimed at him. And he did something they did not expect, he urged the car forward and rammed them before either could get out a shot.

One of the men rolled under the carriage of the car and the other rolled over the top. Taking a deep breath and expelling it with a huff to calm him down, Nate then placed the car in reverse not stopping until he felt two lumps that her rolled over. He then carefully and calmly got out of the limo and inspected what he had done.

"Eeewww. Road Kill," he mumbled looking at the two bodies in the middle of the floor. With a sigh, he then proceeded to check the bodies for a clue of their identities. Among their possessions he had 'liberated' from them were two USP tacticals, an automatic 12 gauge shotgun, a MP5 sub-machinegun and a SIG 552 Commando. He also found Identification cards in their wallets but it seemed wrong to Nate. He knew that they were not with Nakasumi Inc. and that rubbed him wrong.

The USPs had silencers on them as well as the MP5. The only people who use silencers were the ones who didn't want anyone to know that they were there. He also found a CB radio on them, which unfortunately, he crushed while running over them. He needed a way to communicate and the car phone wasn't portable.

Suddenly, he heard a strange beeping sound coming from inside the limo. At first he thought it was a bomb but when did a bomb sounded like the chorus of Naked Mole Rap? Curious, Nate looked inside the back and found Ron's bag. He opened the side pocket and took out a personal diary when he pressed the blinking button the screen activated, showing a teenage boy looking directly at him in confusion.

"Wade, I presume," Nate said. Wade blinked and frowned, and looked a bit worried.

"Who are you," he asked. "And where's Ron?"

"Ron's in the 30th floor, I think," Nate said. He suddenly noticed some movement at his right. Taking the communicator with him, he slowly aimed the USP where he thought he saw movement.

"I'm calling the police," Wade said, typing away on his keyboard.

"Do that," Nate said. From behind one of the pillars, a man came out and saw what had happened to the men who were supposed to patrol this area. Before he could utter a word of warning, Nate fired a couple of shots, neutralizing the threat. "While you're at it, tell them to bring S.W.A.T.." Wade paused in his typing and looked at Nate."

"Why?" Wade asked but instead of answering, Nate popped the trunk, took out his backpack and emptied its contents in the trunk. He took a hunting knife from his stuff and clipped it on his belt.

"You're the genius. Can't you hack into this building's security systems and take a look for yourself?" Nate asked as he loaded the guns and ammo into the backpack. He then started to jog towards the downed man, aiming his USP as he turned, preparing for anything.

"Can't," the tech genius sighed. "Somehow, the phone lines are down. Can't link with the modem."

"What about wireless?" Nate asked as he searched the man and smiled when he found a handheld radio. He also found a couple of Ingrams and, to his shock, a M249 machinegun. Were these guys preparing for war?

"Something's jamming it," Wade said as Nate carried the M249 by its strap over his shoulder. "Even mobile phones aren't working.

"That's impossible. I just called Nakasumi Securities and told them the situation," Nate frowned as he loaded the ammo for the M249 into his backpack. He then stood, holding the USP with one hand and the communicator with his other as he made his way towards the limo.

"I've checked. The jammer was turned on just before you answered my call," Wade said as he typed into his computer. "I've got the police on the line. They're a little wary about this. They said that they need definite proof of the situation before they could send anyone."

"Definite Proof!" Nate said but cringed at the echo he made. "With what's going on today, I think they should check every call to see if they're real or not."

"Hey, even I don't know what's going on," Wade admitted. "Maybe Nakasumi Tower just had glitches." Nate faced the communicator to the two men he ran over and smirked when he heard him gasp. "Or maybe not."

"Wade," Nate took a deep breath and sighed. He needed the boy right now and he needed to treat him as his partner. He needed to trust the kid. "Ron's up there somewhere. I don't know more than you but there are also thirty people up there who needs help. Our help if necessary. Trust me, these guys means business. They have enough weapons here to make Rambo cry for his mommy. But I can't do this alone. I'm not that arrogant to think I could do this by myself. Please, do what you can but get help." Wade was quiet for a few moments and sighed.

"Okay, I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks," Nate smiled in relief. "By the way. Does this thing have an earphone?"

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Kim Possible smiled as she and her family were putting up the Christmas tree, enjoying a perfect night. However, she couldn't believe that Ron had flaked in their celebration. The nerve of the man. He didn't even tell her in person that he wouldn't be coming. If she had known, she would have invited Josh Mankey. Maybe it's not too late…

Suddenly, her Kimmunicator beeped and she did the only thing she thought was prudent; she turned off the device. It was Christmas after all.

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Nate was hiding the bodies of those he had dispatched when he heard Wade's voice in the earpiece that was connected to Ron's communicator. And from the kid's tone, he knew that something's up.

"I called the police and they're sending someone to check the report out," Wade said as Nate hid the last body in the shadows.

"That doesn't sound promising," Nate said as he holstered the USP in one of the thigh holsters he liberated from one of the men and hefted the MP5 in a manner similar to the military, ready for anything.

"They have S.W.A.T. on stand-by and could call Global Justice if necessary," Wade reported almost disheartened.

"What happened?" Nate asked. It was apparent that the kid was in a funk but couldn't figure out why.

"I tried to call Kim but she turned her Kimmunicator off. Apparently she didn't want her Christmas to be disturbed."

"Kim Possible?" Nate mused. "Merry Christmas to her and to hell with the rest of the world?" Nate smirked and shook his head. "No wonder My Lady's pissed at her," he mumbled.

"Kim's not like that!" Wade shouted but Nate didn't wince.

"Defend her if you wish, that doesn't change the fact that we're alone with no help from the outside." Nate sighed while he hid behind one of the pillars. "Are Ron and Kim an item?" there was a pause in the other line. No matter what the kid said, Nate knew.

"They are," Wade said but in a soft breath.

"From what I saw, that's not the case," Nate smiled sadly as he made his way towards the elevators. "Do me a favor, Kid. Don't tell her that Ron's here. From what I've read from her file, she's liable to get people killed."

"Now wait a minute…" Wade was about to protest but Nate took out the communicator from his pocket and glared at the screen.

"This is a fight to stay alive, Kid. Either be a burden or an aid 'cause the people upstairs doesn't need any more bullshit." Wade's defiance deflated as he saw the wisdom of his words. He needed to be professional about this, for the sake of his friend who's trapped upstairs.

"OK. I'm in."

"Good," Nate pocketed the communicator. "Come on, bossman," he muttered as he looked up. "Tell me what's up."

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Ron Stoppable was already on the roof, looking out to the L.A. Skyline. Taking a deep breath, trying to calm himself. Somehow he had managed to navigate his way towards the roof where he knew he had a chance to send out a message with the handheld radio he took from the man he killed.

He knew he couldn't do this alone. He wasn't that stupid. This wasn't an action movie where the hero kills everyone. This was real and more dangerous than everything he had done before.

Pressing the call button, he cried for help.

"Mayday, mayday. Terrorists have taken over Nakasumi Towers. Does anyone copy? I say again, Terrorists have taken over Nakasumi Tower. Need immediate assistance. Does anyone copy?" Ron waited for a response.

"This is 911 emergency. To the person who called for help regarding Nakasumi Tower, please acknowledge," a person in the other line said much to his relief.

"Thank you God!" Ron said as he pressed the call button. "This is the dude you called for help. Nakasumi Tower has been taken over. The perps are carrying automatic weapons and even rockets so tell the boys in blue to get their butts in gear and head over here!"

"We dispatched a unit to investigate. Please hold on until then."

"One unit!" Ron couldn't believe it. "Girl, that better be Robocop or the shit's gonna hit the fan!" Ron didn't get to hear the response. The door leading to the stairway opened with a crash and armed men began shooting at his direction. They had somehow figured out where he was but that was a no brainer. It was just a matter of time before they came for him.

Ron's eyes widened as he saw the men and the armaments they carried. They had more guns than the entire Middleton Police force had.

"I'm in deep shit."

(A/n)

The votes are in. Thanks for the ideas. Better stay tuned to what I have decided. ;) Sorry for the delay and I hope by inserting Nate wouldn't hurt the story.