Chapter Seven: A Dragon's Heart

Once in the air, Kim sighed in relief. "What was Drakken thinking?!"

Veronica nodded without a word and let the air currents carry her a little higher. The woman could still fill the chains across her back. Unsure of herself, the woman flapped her wings slowly to remind herself of their existence. The woman wanted to curl into a ball as she focused on the sensation of chains. With a roar of defiance, Shego tried to break the gloom. It still hung over her like a dark specter. As a last attempt at control, the woman let fear ripple through her before she turned her attention to sensation in her wings.

With her wings spread wide, Shego felt herself relax and release the odd tension she felt under those chains. I'm a damn dragon! The now black-scaled woman thought. Part of her mind finally felt truly free. The thought of chains made her shiver and begin to fall. Nothing should scare me! Unbidden, tears began to fall from the woman's face as her body began to dive. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ME?!

Kim looked over at the woman's lack of reply in worry. The armored teen felt a wave of fear masked feebly in anger slam into her mind. (Veronica!) With few other options, Kim angled herself to speed her descent and added thrust to outpace Shego and get below the stalled Halfling before they both became smears on the rapidly approaching earth. Kim nodded to herself and quickly positioned herself below the woman. Then, Kim put her arms around Shego as best she could and angled her thrusters to take them higher into the sky. In the distance on her right, Kim noticed a giant egg and nest in the side of a mountain. (We're approaching Go City, and Veronica just had a major panic attack,) Kim grit her teeth under her helmet. (As much as I hate this,) The redhead looked up to check on her girlfriend and sighed when a "low fuel" warning popped up on her HUD. (Go Tower is the closest building tall enough to land safely.) Kim reluctantly made her descent towards the "G" in the most overblown symbol of hubris on the planet.

The concrete under Kim's boots made her breathe a sigh of relief before the Mando'ad gently set Shego on her feet. "Veronica," she said softly. "What happened up there?"

The woman hissed and roughly moved her body away from Kim's support, wrapped her wings close around her body, and relaxed as the cloak floated into its resting position over the woman's wings. "I never said you could call me that!"

Kim reeled in hurt but wouldn't back down. "When you're ready to talk," Kim gently put a hand on the Halfling's covered shoulder. (Tactical retreat…) The words made her want to scream, (…NOT surrender!)

Shego laughed softly. "You are so damn stubborn, Cupcake."

Kim nodded and started walking towards the roof entrance to the "Ultimate Fortress of Goodness". "Then, you know I'm not done with this conversation."

Shego nodded and took a deep breath before she followed Kim into the base of her discontent. A small smile grew on Shego's face when she walked behind Kim around the housing area. This area seemed rather small compared to the portion of the base Kim had seen before and consisted of a red door, a green one, one purple, and a final blue with appropriate space between for comfortable rooms. The smile turned to a deep scowl at the blue door. "It hasn't changed a bit."

Kim took off her helmet and held it in the crook of her left arm. Then, she spied the same doors and shook her head with a look of distaste. "No wonder you left."

Shego stopped in surprise at Kim's statement and instant change to hostile body language. "What?"

Kim walked back to her and put her free hand on the green door. Through the fledgling Karadim, the bounty hunter saw blurry flashes. She couldn't make out much from the havoc of still frames. A toddler making finger paintings and insisting to paint animals in the blotches came to Kim's mind when she thought of the stills. However, the emotions linked to Shego in that door registered clear and sharp in Kim's mind. "Pain, terrible pain…"

When Kim swayed, Shego rushed to catch the girl. "Kim, what happened?"

Kim looked up at Shego and shivered, "I can't explain. I touched the door and suddenly felt as if I was being hit repeatedly with a ten pound cannon at point blank range."

Shego tensed and nodded, "Let's get downstairs before Hego comes in and takes us for scouts for one of the nutcases Team Go fights."

Kim raised a brow. "Is he…?"

Shego only shrugged, "He may have learned a few things since the last time you met."

Kim nodded and decided not to dive any deeper into that line of questions. With a grin at sight of the base's operations center, Kim made herself at home and sat in Hego's chair because it matched her armor.

Shego allowed herself to laugh. "The look on his face when he sees ya, Kimmie." The woman sat in her own chair and put her feet on the table. "It'll be priceless."

Kim became alert when she heard the unique mechanisms in the main door release. Then, the tension melted away when Shego smiled at the sound of young feet on the metal floor.

"Luis and Clark!" The smile wavered and finally vanished when hundreds of Wegos swamped their older sister.

The chair tumbled over under the weight. Panic swam in Shego's eyes when she hit the cold metal floor with no room to move out from under the boys. She began to struggle, only faintly aware of the clones' weight as the mass morphed into steel chains for Shego. The Halfling let go with a spine-chilling roar. "(No, not again!)" Cold and glazed eyes met Kim's.

Kim gasped and stared in horror, her helmet dropping from her grip with an unheeded slam onto the floor. "Boys, SCATTER!"

Without thought, the boys followed orders. Flames rolled from Shego's mouth a nanosecond later. Kim felt tears prick her eyes and moved to shield the main pair from the torrent. Kim forced herself forward even as she felt her hair begin to singe a little and moved forward in careful movement.

Shego, Kim spoke through the Karadim. Listen to me. Kim gently pushed pictures of Luis and Clark over the Bond. Your little brothers are here with me. Kim ventured a hand on the dragon's black smooth scales. We are scared. Kim pressed her face to Shego's. I'm scared. Come back to me…please.

"(Kimmie?)" Shego asked in a quiet and fearful grumble.

Kim nodded. "You are safe."

The woman looked at her brothers as they shook in fear and looked back at her with trepidation in their eyes, "Luis, Clark;" the elder sister looked down. "Do you remember a guy named Drakken?"

"That…" Luis began. "…guy who wants to take over the world and wished you away from us…" Clark continued. "…again?"

Veronica nodded. "He betrayed me and changed me drastically," Veronica looked away from the twins in fear. "When you guys jumped on me all at once…"

"You went Rambo on us?" Clark suggested with a shiver at the thought.

Veronica nodded. "Please, be careful around me."

The boys nodded and moved to hug their sister with a bit of lingering fear, but that fear melted away as Luis looked back and nodded to Kim. You think she's good for Veronica?

We would have attacked her with clones if Kim was an asshole, Clark responded with a simple nod of confirmation. You know that! Arnold did say he thought Sis seemed happier while we worked with her and Kim.

That leaves Hego, the boys thought in unison with an audible groan.

Veronica cut in at the groan. "You know?" The older sister asked. "It's very rude not to share thoughts about family."

The boys blushed when they realized they were caught. "Can you take your hood off?"

Veronica smiled and nodded before she slowly pulled her hood down to reveal her scaly face to her younger brothers. For a moment, Shego looked down when Luis and Clark only stared. Then, Luis nodded to his brother. "We agree, Sis." He said with a smirk. "This is awesome!"

The draconic woman looked at her brothers in confusion, "What?'

Kim laughed, "Think about it from their perspective," the redhead shook her head. "You are a literal dragon."

Shego nodded, but before she could respond, an alert came to the security system. The boys sighed when they saw Kim tense and prepare for a fight. When they looked over at Shego, confusion once again replaced happiness when she pulled her hood back up and veiled her face again in shadow. When the Wegos didn't see Kim or her helmet, a shiver shook through one then the other.

A crash alerted the group to a place in the main hall between the entrance and the operation center. The boys ran to join the fight, but a clawed hand on Luis' left and Clark's right shoulders stopped the duo. "Just enjoy the show, boys."

It took Kim some time to concoct a strategy for Hego the Brute. As he tried to hit her, Kim dodged and didn't let a hit land. "Who are you?' The man growled between punches. "How did you get into Go Tower?!"

"(Tower?)" Kim growled as she slipped into Mando'a. "(A blind child could break into this pathetic 'fortress',)" Kim shook her head. "(I grow tired of these games.)" Then, the girl trained from the time she could stand took Hego's head in her feet Tekken style and drove his head into the floor.

"Damn!" Luis and Clark chorused with stunned looks and wide grins.

"I think I know why you like 'Kimmie' so much."

Shego bristled at the sweet, teasing tone Luis used when he spoke the name, but Veronica couldn't really argue with the statement. "When you're right, little bro, you're right."

The boys high-fived. Then, they created duplicates to help Kim haul the man to the infirmary in an upper level of the tower.

"What drew you to our sister?"

Rather than try to pick the individual clone who spoke, Kim just continued to march while directed where to go by other Wego clones. She shrugged. "It wasn't just one thing honestly," Kim remained too focused on her current objective to notice a smile as it grew under her helmet when she began to talk of her former nemesis. "She's a fighter who can keep up with me. The woman doesn't take crap from anyone." Kim laughed at the many times Shego called Drakken's plots out for the clusterfucks they were." Kim looked back at the boys before she bent down and hefted Hego's limp body onto a bed. "Beauty only comes as a plus."

Hego groaned as Kim gently and almost reverently removed her helmet. Then, the man coughed and smiled, "Miss Possible, what brings you to Go Tower?' He asked with a hint of joy in his voice and a little too much energy for a man coming back to consciousness, "Do you need the services of Team Go to help you apprehend our wayward sister?"

Kim bit her lip for a moment and watched the man's reaction. "What's your name?"

"Ma'am, I can't-"

Kim cut him off. "I'm testing you for any damage to memory. Please answer the question."

"Viktor, Viktor Goshen, the year is 2006."

Kim nodded. Then, she turned to the Wegos. "Leave him to rest, boys."

The Wegos smirked at each other. "You sure you don't need to thrash him a little more?"

Kim looked at Viktor and donned her helmet. Kim watched the man's eyes widen and tensed for the fight she knew to come. Víktor snarled and launched himself from the bed. Kim crossed her arms an smiled when the Beskar stopped the punch dead. "You really want to try this again?" Kim asked calmly, even as she moved towards the door slowly in a bid to get to the hall and give herself more room. "No wonder Veronica left."

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MISS POSSIBLE?!"

"Kaysh mirsh solus…" Kim muttered to herself before she sighed, "(Sentients change, you brainless meatbrick!)" When Viktor continued to stare at Kim like a guppy out of water, Kim closed her eyes and forced herself to speak English. "I am Kim Possible. My mother and father are Ann and James Possible." Kim sighed, "What? Do you think people are like cartoon characters, static and permanently frozen into a loop of life?" When the man nodded, Kim threw up her hands, "Ni'urmankalar!"

"What?"

Kim shook her head. "Come on, Hego," she growled as she consciously avoided his real name like a plague. (No man this brainless should be called the victor of anything, not even in jest.) "The rest of your family is here because we all need to talk."

Hego continued to stare. "I understand. Has Shego come to her senses and decided to join the right and just?"

Kim felt eyes trail up her back like all-too-familiar high school boys in the halls of Middleton High. With a deep breath to remove the desire before she turned around and decked the thirty-something man, Kim focused on the sensation to locate exactly where Hego's gaze landed and stayed. Then, the Mando'ad turned to face the man.

In the main room, Shego growled. She could feel alien eyes on Kim in an inappropriate manner. The Halfling felt her ire rise to dangerous levels. Kim, are you alright?

I'll take care of him. Then, Kim swiftly kicked him between the legs. "My head, unlike yours, is not housed in my ass!" Kim growled as she masked her discomfort around the man in a thick layer of anger. "Eyes front!"

"Yes…" The boy in a man's body groaned out as he looked up at Kim's helmeted face and felt a brief flash of panic. "…ma'am!"

Kim didn't spare Hego a nod. By the time he got back to his feet and walked with a grimace and careful shuffle to avoid contact between his boys and his legs, not that he could feel his manhood in the interim, all of Team Go plus the Kim Possible imposter met him.

Arnold stared when he saw his older brother walk in the room as if someone beat him within an inch of his life, "What the hell happened to you?"

The question drew the attention of the Wegos to their oldest brothers because Arnold rarely, if ever, asked about another person's welfare. "Looks like he tried to act…" Luis began.

"…on his infatuation with Kim." Clark finished.

Shego raised an eyebrow in Hego's direction. Then, the Halfling looked at Kim. When Kim nodded, Shego removed her hood. Hego stared for a moment seemingly broken. "TEAM GO, attack the intruders!"

Arnold sighed, "Give it up, Viktor," he smiled at his sister. "I knew it was you the whole time, Sis." The shrinking hero looked at Kim in her armor. "You sure did take your sweet time with my sister."

Veronica facepalmed and hoped Viktor misinterpreted Arnold's intent for the time being. Welcome to my family, Xena, Shego said with slight shame in her tone as she spoke over their Karadim. I'm so sorry.

Don't you dare talk like that! The armored redhead countered. I chose you, not your family. If Hego wants to be an ass, I've got a favor with the Go City civil court judge after I put her abusive husband six feet under. All I have to do is call Wade. He's got her contact information.

Luis and Clark shared a knowing and evil look before Clark cleared his throat, "What's the Goshen House Rule about telepathic communication around the family, Sis?"

Shego mentally cursed which caused Kim to giggle. "Fine," Shego grinned at Hego and made certain he saw her gleaming reptilian fangs. "Kimmie and I were discussing how to handle Viktor."

Hego looked at his family and spluttered in shock. "Why would you want to get rid of me?!" He asked in shock. "I'm for Justice and Peace in Go City!"

Shego raised a brow. "I'm curious about your little secret The Twins just spilled," Veronica's eyes flashed red for a moment. "If you have nothing to hide, you won't mind if I look in on your room."

Hego glared at her and moved quickly, but Shego outpaced him to the blue door. "There's nothing in here!"

Shego rolled her eyes as she blocked the door with her arms crossed, "Running to protect your room makes you look guilty," Shego sneered with a deadly look in her green eyes. "I thought you would know this with how many people you've put behind bars for your own glory and ego."

"Shego," the blue strongman said with a glare. "I don't want to hurt you. Please, let me pass."

Veronica played with the knob and watched her older brother's reaction. "See? I think that's a load of horseshit." Veronica looked at him. "No one has an instinct to hide or protect 'nothing'." Veronica seized her brother's neck in a titanium grip in the time it took for him to blink. The entire tower shook with the force of Hego's back as it impacted the door. "Do you know what I am?"

"You're a monster!"

"No," Veronica said as her eyes turned blood red with rage. "I'm a Dragon who protects her girlfriend from the true monsters!" Veronica released him as quickly as she gripped him a few moments before. Then, Shego roared, "(Open it!)"

The blue-suited man's hand trembled as he opened the door. The room had the look of a military barracks moments after a DI gave approval to the room. That is with one exception in the form of a large "shrine" made of newspaper clippings and pictures of Kim. "I can explain!"

Shego snorted. Black smoke roiled angrily from Shego's nostrils. "GIVE ME ONE GOOD REASON WHY I SHOULD LET YOU LIVE AND NOT ROAST YOUR BEASTLY BODY RIGHT HERE?!"

"Th-Think of the boys!" He stammered. "Would you want them to see you as a murderer?!"

Shego's eyes cooled from deep blood red to their baseline green as Shego considered her youngest brothers, "Luis and Clark are too young to know different and accept your black and white morality, but they will eventually grow beyond it like the rest of us." Shego reminded him. "Although, it seems your morals grow grey wherever it suits you." Veronica got in his face. "Lay a finger on my little brothers, and I will hunt you down!"

Hego set his jaw and attacked Shego's wings. "I doubt these are even real!"

Kim fell to the floor in the main center and screamed as her shoulder blades erupted in pain, "You bastard!"

Kim fought through the pain as rage spurred her to her feet at a sprint. Through the pain, Kim pushed all into The Consuming Void. Then, she ran and tackled Hego to the ground. Under the weight, Hego rolled and started punching. Kim moved to dodge every blow aimed at her face. Then, Kim took a deep breath and rolled. Hego's fist blew a hole in the building, and in the scuffle, both began to free fall from the building. Kim hurriedly toggled her thrusters and felt her heart sink as the thrusters failed to ignite.

VERONICA!

Without thought, Shego dove after Kim and forced herself as tightly pressed as she could to reduce air resistance and flapped her wings frantically with each beat shooting new pain through her right wing. Almost…there! When a hard impact on her back signaled Kim safe, Veronica did her best to pull up to the tower. Painful and slow as it was compared to the dive, the woman drove herself harder and collapsed in exhaustion in the hallway with the doors through the same hole she dove from about fifteen minutes later. Through tired and in pain, Veronica looked at Kim on her back and smiled, "(You're safe…)" She rumbled in exhaustion before tiredness claimed her and took her to dreams.

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