"The Adventures of Professor Proton, Jr: The Proton Express…"

Summary: In my first longer Proton Jr tale, can Prof Proton Jr. aka mild-mannered Sheldon Cooper and Dr. Amy aka Amy F. Fowler save the world at Christmas…And can Proton Jr. keep that blond sob of an engineering genius Tom Swift, Jr. away from his girl?

Equally important…Should Cameragirl Penny allow this thing to appear on her acting credits or just accept that all hope of a professional career is gone and just enjoy while peddling her drugs?

Disclaimer: All is Chuck's…

Part XXXVII…

The Ocean Arrow's Suburo compartment, now thankfully again upright, the ship having settled on the ocean floor, though heavily pelted by rocks and debris and a few decent-sized boulders…

"Warning…Hull breach, engine section! Warning main power shutdown, emergency power only! Warning…Hull breach, Arturo section, cabin fully flooded! Warning…Hull breech, Suburo section…" Alarms blaring…

"Bud…" Swift groaned, rising from the floor to see Barclay rising as well. "Amy?" he turned to her. She groaning, but opening eyes.

"I'm ok…" she told him. "You?"

"Nothing serious broken…" Swift nodded. "Except my poor girl here…And maybe my rep for being lucky." Wan smile.

"Well, if you can walk away from a landing, it's still a landing." Bud noted, faint smile as he moved to the controls.

"Proton!" Amy sat up. "Have you heard anything?!" she turned to Swift who shook head.

"Radio's working but the power's too low to even reach the surface…"

"Guys!" Bud sharply. "I'm worried about them too but you two had best get to plugging the leaks there. The viewport emergency doors are blocked open by those rocks." He indicated several small leaks in the main viewport glass about the frame. Swift moving to a locker and pulling out a large aerosol can.

"Tomasite spray for emergency repairs…Stand back." He warned Amy, spraying at the largest leak. A sprayed mass of clear plastic instantly sealing the leak, he turned to spray at the next largest.

"Can you get the other can, in there?" he pointed to the locker. "It's gonna take more than this." She nodded, hurrying to pull out the next can. "Just shake it and point at the leak."

"Bud? What's the status?" he turned to Barclay at the controls. Amy spraying to seal the last visible leak.

"Just about everything's ko'd right now in the main section and Arturo's a total loss." Bud noted, sighing. "Most systems here are functional but we're on emergency solar battery power."

"Can we detach and surface? The manual system, maybe?"

"Maybe but not with these rocks on us…" Bud indicated a few boulders visible through the viewport.

"Can't we find a way to reach Arthur and Bernadette?" Amy, anxiously.

"Not under this load of rubble and without more power." Tom shook head. "Any chance of firing up the auxiliary reactor, Bud?"

"I wouldn't chance it…Not without a chance to look it over on the surface. It's out right now and I'd expect it's been compromised."

"So, we do nothing?!" Amy fumed.

"Amy…We're all worried about Proton and Bernadette." Swift noted. "But we have some serious trouble here, right now. We've got to get free of this somehow and get to the surface to contact Swift Enterprises and the UN."

"What about the Lermontov?" Amy suggested. "I know they're helping the Wyckcliffes but they seemed to be trying to pretend to be working with us. Maybe they'd help, to maintain cover?"

"Or finish us off…" Bud shrugged. "If we could even reach them by sonarphone…"

"Lets keep them as a final option…" Swift nodded. "I doubt they could help us much if they even wanted to."

"Well, I for one want to get out of here and kill that bastard Wyckcliffe…And his maniac sister." Bud grimly noted.

"I still can't believe Munson would try to kill us." Tom sighed.

"Tom…" Bud frowned.

"I know, I know…I won't let it stop us from dealing with them however we have to, but I can't help it." Shrug.

"Well, whether your ex- pulled the trigger or just sat back and her insane brother fire away at us…" Bud sighed. "We'll have to let justice sit for now."

"Especially now…" he noted as another slight leak appeared in the viewport frame…

"Yeah, I guess." Swift agreed. "But…"

"Swift, it's time for you to forget your punctured romance and get crackin' on getting us outta here." Amy frowned. "If it's any comfort, much as I adore him, if my sweet baboo Arthur turned traitor and tried to kill us, I'd throw him out the airlock. Of course I say that cause I know it would never happen and I do sympathize but, lets get the lead out, right?!"

Bud chuckling, Swift offering a wan smile…

"You're right, Dr. Fowler. But even I gotta have a minute on this one." He grinned. "You probably should have gone with MacGiver here."

"What about the Fat Man suits?" Amy suggested.

"Well, one seems functional, in the main section if we can get to it…" Bud eyed the control panel.

"The others are showing no signs of power. They're in Arturo and are likely damaged, if we could even get to them."

"There's another leak!" Amy pointed. Hurrying to the Tomasite can and spraying to seal it.

"Not much of this left…" she noted ruefully.

Yeah…Swift eyed the control panel… "Ok…Amy? Can you pull the hydrolung suits out? In the far emergency locker there." He pointed.

"Sure…" she went over. Bud eyeing Swift as Swift reviewed the controls.

We're not gonna get very far in those at this depth and pressure…

"Let me see if I can get more out of the emergency batteries. We should have more power than this." Swift noted.

"I'd say a couple of the battery compartments are flooded…" Bud replied.

"Here…" Amy had come over, carrying two zippered plastic bags. "I left the last over there…"

"Ok, good. Put one on." Swift told her.

"And there's another leak…" Bud noted, eyeing the leak. "We've gotta get the viewport shutters closed asap."

"That's the last of the Tomasite here…" Amy noted, setting down the can after spraying the latest leak. "I'll get my hydrolung." She went over.

"We'd best put ours on too, Bud." Swift regarded him.

"Ok…"

"You're not proposing we try to swim to the surface in these?…Neat a form of scuba as they are." Amy, now in hydrolung suit. A remarkably flexible self-contained scubalike system but drawing its oxygen/helium mix from the water itself rather than a bulky tank.

"The pressure would crush us or the bends would kill us on the way up." She noted.

"You won't need it for long." Swift eyed her.

"Me?"

"The main compartment isn't fully flooded yet. I want you to go out the airlock door into it and find that undamaged suit and get in. Even if some water floods it you can pump it out…Then find the access tube to the outer hull…And if you can get out…"

"If I open the airlock and it's compromised, it may flood in here." She eyed him. "Wait…You want me to leave you two behind…?" Amy stared. "Not only is that rampantly sexist but…"

"We have our hydrolungs, we'll manage." Swift noted.

"Not when the pressure rises…" she frowned.

"If you can make to the surface, you can call in help. We'll survive down here for a while."

"I won't do it! One of you should go."

"Our best chance is if we stay. Bud and I know the ship, you don't." Swift pointed out. "And one of us has to get to the surface and get help. Proton and Bernadette need us. And you know this is bigger than even the four of us."

"Go on, Amy." Bud noted. "Tom's right and you know it. We'll be ok, the compartment won't flood for a good while and we can block it off…"

"No…There's gotta be another way." Amy shook head.

"And if there is, Bud and I are the best ones to find it. But you going now gives us better odds. Hey, this is my ship and I'm Captain and Leader of the Expedition." Stern frown. "And I'm sorry to pull rank." Wan smile by Swift… "But this is not a request. It's an order, Dr. Fowler. Get moving."

"Come on, Amy." Bud eyed her. "You know he's right. Get going while the main section's not completely flooded."

("Damn, honey…" Penny beamed at Leonard. "This is pretty tense. And my bestie, all grown up, gets to play heroine." Looking over at Amy in hydrolung suit, a converted scuba suit… "Don't mention the 'all grown up' thing to her." She noted.)

"Hey, we're getting a signal…" Bud eyed the control panel. "Sonarphone."

"Is it the Lermentov?" Swift, turning, asked.

"Just…A…" Bud adjusted a dial…

"Well, Pwroton…And Swift…Juniowrs…Sowrry to see you've had some techie problems." Wickcliffe's voice. "Maybe you two need a little mood music…" sneering tone over the intercom.

Recording plays, a deep male voice…

"What do you do with a drunken sailor? What do you do with a drunken sailor? What do you with a drunken sailor earlie in the mornin'?"

Amy eyeing Bud and Swift…

"Heave ho and up she rises, heave ho and up she rises…

Heave ho…And up she rises, earlie in the mornin'…"

"That little lisping son of a bitch!" she cried.

The recording stopped…

"Oh, Doctowr Amy Fowlewr. Glad to heawr you suwrvived too. Whewre's deawr old Pwrton, tell me he made it." Sneering tone.

"Damn it, Bwarry…" Munson's voice, hissing.

"Just a little fun with ouwr fwriends, sis. Couwrtesy the fewrtily imaginative mind of Doctowr Migelito Loveless of the old 'Wild Wild West' show. One of his best little games, this one." Chuckle. "So tell me…And pewrhaps I'll dwrop a line to the UN aftewr we pick up our pwrecious cawrgo…Did Pwrton lose his chawrge owr what?"

"He's whewre you'll nevewr…Never reach him, bastard!"

("Oh, my mother must never see this." Amy grinned. "Then again, maybe…"

"I'm scared. Are you scared?" Sheldon eyed Penny who surreptiously nodded.

"Isn't she something?" Leonard beamed to them, both eyeing him coldly.

What have you done, you Frankenstein…? Clearly on both their minds.)

"And you'll never see that precious cargo!" she finished, Swift and Bud trying to calm her.

"What?" Bwarry, flatly.

"He already has it, you son of a…!"

("Amy!" Sheldon, covering ears.

"Sheldon, it's just for dramatic effect…" Leonard sighed.

"Penny, tell…Penny?" eyeing her covering her ears.

"What are doing to my bestie?" she shook head.

"Oh, stop being prudes, you two." Amy frowned over. "Sheldon, if Barry Kripke were gloating over possibly killing you, you bet I'd cuss him out."

"That's quite a gal you got thewre, Coopewr. Take it fwrom youwr nemesis." Barry grinned, raising glass of beer to Amy.

"Well, even Mom, and especially Meemaw, have been known to cuss at times…And when it's for my sake, it is rather…" Sheldon noted to a head-shaking Penny.

I swear this wasn't my idea, Howard hissed to a troubled-looking Bernadette.)

"You're lying." Bwarry, flatly. No trace of lisp.

"Amy…" Bud hissed. "Lets not give away the store."

"Sorry…" she whispered. "But maybe if we keep him talking…?" Swift nodding at her look.

"He's got it and it's secured. So go tell your friends the Russians you failed, Wyckcliffe." She told the microphone.

"It's not possible. Swift? You tell me owr so help me, I'll bwring the wrest of this mountain down on you all!"

"The cargo's safe and sound, Bwarry." Swift took microphone. "And you're finished."

"Liawr! I'll see you in Hell!" Bwarry's voice furious.

"Bwarry, no! They're just baiting you." Munson's voice. "We can't waste time and it's too dangerous to go back there."

"You're both finished, Munson." Swift told the mike. "Run while you can."

"Thewre's no way…" Bwarry's voice, fuming. "Wait…Did you come up with some clevewr nick-nack, Swift?"

"Bwarry…We have to go. Tom, stop it." Munson's voice. "He will kill you."

"You betcha, I will." Bwarry's voice cold. "But not for the wreasons you jewrks all thought. I'm doing this to save the wowrld from Humanity."

"Sure you are…" Bud noted, dryly. "Like Hitler wanted to save the world from my Jewish grandmother. But me, my ambitions are small. I'm just gonna kill you, Wyckcliffe."

"Big talk fwrom a guy buwried alive…" Bwarry chuckled. "So, Pwrton's not thewre…Ah…" chuckle.

"That detectowr. Yeah, that's it. You figuwred out a way to use it to synchwronize with the ship. Nice. Kudos, gentlemen…And lady. But if I gathewr wright, he's only got to the ship. That's a pity. It will be a gwreat loss to Science when I have my allies blow it up with theiwr nukes." Chuckle.

Amy, panic-stricken look to Swift.

"But it will give them a chance to squawre things with the UN. 'Wrussia saves wowrld fwrom deadly space cawrgo'. Nice, huh?"

"You won't destroy it, Bwarry." Swift, clicking on mike.

"Wrather than let you and Pwroton have it, to give to a Humanity that will then spwread its cuwrse into space? Like a viwrus, destwroying each and evewry wowrld we touch? Oh, yeah, old friend. I can destroy it." Grimly, no lisp at end.

"Putinsky won't." Swift noted.

"If he can't have it, no one can. Believe me, he'll see eye to eye with me. Unless…" Bwarry paused.

"We're not giving it to you, Bwarry." Swift, firmly. "Not a chance."

"Too bad. That's a shame. Well, sowrry to buwry you folks alive and wrun but I gotta go call my pals. Incidentally, and you'll love this, I nevewr intended to let them have it eithewr. See, I'd hate to think you folks might think I did this for money." Sneer. "See ya. Sis? Wanna say goodbye?"

"Tom, just try to keep safe there. I'll try to get help to you." Munson, desperately.

"Go to Hell, you lyin' bitch!" Amy cried.

(Penny sadly shaking head at Leonard…

How could you?

"Bestie, come on. And I adlibbed that one. No offense, Lesley!" Amy called. Lesley offering wave and smile.

Ten-to-one what she's really upset about is how good Amy's getting…Bernadette hissed to Howard.

Hmmn…Yeah…

I may have created a new star…Howard noted to himself, adjusting his monacle.)