The Global Justice helicopter sat down in a jungle clearing in the pouring rain. It was deep in the Amazon rain forest, and half a kilometer from its destination; a local village.
It had been raining hard and steadily for several weeks now, and the local rivers had swollen over their banks, flooding the land for miles around. The Red Cross and other help organizations had sent expeditions in to evacuate all the people they could, and had a high degree of success. Except for this one village.
An earthquake in the very far past had caused the land to slip, leaving an abrupt drop of some seventy feet on the east side of the river. The village sat in a shallow, rocky bowl with steep sides, leaving only one way in or out at the bottom of the drop.
Geophysical research satellites had shown that the river was in danger of breaching the narrow, rocky wall that prevented it from flooding the bowl, and the village needed to be cleared before it did.
The evac trucks were four kilometers away from the village, and couldn't get closer because of the denseness of the jungle. They had sent people in to inform the villagers and help the evacuation, but none had returned. It was very suspicious, and why Team Possible had been called in.
"I'll wait for you here," said the pilot, as the main hatch opened.
"Okay, we'll report back as soon as we can," replied Kim. "You have the frequency?"
The pilot gave a 'thumbs up'. "Good luck," he said.
Kim grinned and returned the 'thumbs up'. Then she followed Ron and Jinx out into the rain.
Besides their standard Team Possible clothes, they were wearing camo ponchos and caps, but they were quickly drenched anyway.
Kim pulled the Kimmunicator and studied the map displayed. "The village is that way," she said in a voice loud enough to be heard over the rain, and pointed. The others nodded understanding, and followed her into the jungle.
Some time later they approached the only opening in the rocky walls. It was theorized the bowl-like depression had been caused by a meteorite, but it had never been checked out.
Kim stopped and looked at something, then pulled Ron and Jinx down behind a bush.
"There are tents in front of the passage," she said. The other two cautiously looked and confirmed it. The tents were camo as well, and in the rain could barely be seen unless you walked practically up to them.
"Definitely not Red Cross issue," said Ron, and Jinx nodded her agreement.
"Let's sneak up and see what the sitch is," said Kim. "Ron, you listen at that tent, Jinx, you at that one, and I'll take the bigger one. Meet back here in fifteen."
They snuck up to their assigned tents, and listened to the people inside. Ron and Jinx had no luck, because the occupants were speaking Spanish, which neither of them understood. So they recorded the words to translate later.
Kim, on the other hand, heard English.
"You think they'll pay up?" asked a voice with an American accent.
"Pfah, they'd better, if they want to live," said a second voice.
"I know there's a lot of valuable metals there. I traced that native artwork to here," said a female voice.
"You had better be right. I hate having my time wasted, and I've got a business to run," said the second voice.
"Business, right," said the first. "You run a gang of bandits who go where you want, and take what you want."
"Exactamente. And when I have enough people and money, I will take over this pitiful little country, and make it a power to be feared," said the second.
"You can have it," said the female voice, "If my theory is right, my reputation in the scientific world will be made, and that's all I care about."
There was the sound of movement. "They'll be back with what we want, and soon," said the second voice.
"How do you know?" asked the first.
"Look up there. That's where the rock holding back the river is thinnest, and you can see water trickling down from that spot. It won't be long now," was the reply.
Kim couldn't see the spot he was referring to from her position, but she'd decided she'd heard enough anyway. She slipped away from the camp, and back to the spot behind the bush.
Jinx and Ron were already there. When they had gotten back from the camp, they listened to the translated recordings.
"Hear anything useful?" asked Kim.
"Only that there are twelve people in the camp, and they are armed. No idea what they're doing," said Jinx.
"I got nothin'," said Ron, "Except they have two Red Cross people hostage. Didn't hear where they're keeping them, though."
"Well, here's what I heard," said Kim. "They're trying to extort something from the villagers.
They won't let them out unless they get what they want, and the dam is about to burst up there."
"They'll let them drown?" asked Jinx.
"Apparently so," said Kim.
Jinx got an angry look. "Let's take them out, now."
"Agreed," said Kim. "Standard drill, but be careful." They left the concealment of the bushes and got into position.
Ron walked in front of the tents, and said in a loud voice, "Hello? Anyone here?"
A number of men with surprised looks stuck their heads out of the tents. On seeing Ron,
they grabbed guns and quickly surrounded him.
"Uh... anybody direct me to the nearest Bueno Nacho?" he asked, looking at the grim faces.
Jinx stepped out and threw hex bolts at them, which caused their guns to rust solid in a couple of seconds.
In the ensuing confusion, Kim came out and started kicking butt with Jinx's help. It was all over in about twenty seconds.
Just then the flap of the biggest tent opened, and the leader came out, followed by his guests. "What's going on out here?" he asked, brandishing the biggest pistol Kim had ever seen.
But it was no match for Jinx's hexes, and was rusted solid like the other weapons in short order. Kim took out the leader, and looked at the other two.
They put up their hands. "We surrender," said the man, "We're not fighters."
Jinx got out plastic restraints and had them tied to trees quickly. Ron had found the two Red Cross people and released them.
"Ron, get to the village and get the evacuation started. I'll stay here to help and direct and keep an eye on these thugs," said Kim.
Ron took off through the passage.
"Jinx..." she said, turning to her pink-eyed partner.
"I can't get through to either the chopper or the Red Cross people. If this valley IS meteoric, it must be the magnetic ore causing interference," she said, fiddling with the Jennunicator.
"Then go back to the copter yourself and report," said Kim, "I'll handle things here."
"Gotcha, chief," said Jinx with a grin, and disappeared back the way they came.
She left markers as she went back to the copter to make it easier for others to find their way.
In the copter, she reported what happened. The pilot contacted other, waiting choppers who had armed agents ready to go.
"We need to move so they can drop people here," said the pilot to Jinx.
"That's fine. I want to see where the river is about to break through anyway," she said,
sitting in the copilot's seat. "I might be able to do something about it."
They took off heading well above the trees towards the river.
"There it is," said the pilot, pointing through the front window.
Below, the river made a wide bend that brought it against the low stone wall above the valley where the village sat. The wall was crumbling, and water beginning to fall down the cliff. Jinx gave a gasp of horror, as without warning the wall suddenly gave way completely, creating a waterfall fifteen feet wide thundering down into the valley.
It would fill the valley and drown the locals in short order, unless she could do something.