I do not own any Disney characters named herein and am only borrowing them to tell a nonprofit tale meant for entertainment purposes only.
Kim Possible: Vamped
By LJ58
27
Ron looked up from the scrolls he had been studying and eyed the writing.
"That can't be right," he frowned.
"What concerns you, Ron-San," Yori asked, looking across the table from where she was making them a morning meal.
"I was studying the writings on Elders from Master-Sensei's library," he said and looked up from the scroll to eye Yori with a dark frown.
"That is likely wise considering our current companion's state," the young ninja girl declared.
"Yeah, but here. This is saying Elders are not just one entity. This says they are often reflections of several people within a single body, and you cannot always tell which is in control until you face them. If I read this right, it says…today's friend can be tomorrow's enemy."
Yori leaned over his shoulder, eyed the scroll, and nodded. "Not reflections, Ron-San. Aspects. You must be wary around rousing aspects of the Elder's personality. For they can take on a life of their own, and so be a greater danger than the whole. For instance, recall when we have seen Possible-San enraged by Gemini, and again almost by Agent Du-San. When she is so, she is no longer a friend, but an enemy to all before her."
"Oh. Yeah, I see that one. Man, just when I thought this couldn't get more complicated. Only….if Kim is in control now…."
"Recall what we have seen and heard already, Ron-San," Yori said as she went back to the meal she was preparing to finish it. "Possible-San can still be angered, and if something were to happen to do so again, we cannot be certain even we could calm her. Best to ensure she is not angered at all. That," she went on as she put the dish into the oven now to bake before starting to clean up the residue, "Is why Director-Sama agreed to have Shego watch her. She knew few others could manage."
"Because Shego is so tough herself," Ron nodded.
"Because Shego is one of the few Possible-San still respects. An Elder, Ron-San, will not even listen to one she no longer respects."
"Oh, man. She's practically ignoring Dr. Director lately," he realized.
"Yes. However it happened, Possible-San has decided Director-Sama is no longer worthy of true respect. I fear the reasons, but I fear the results all the more. This is why Shego is here, and why she calls upon us."
"Because she knows Kim still likes us," Ron realized.
"Indeed," Yori nodded, putting the dirty dishes into the dishwasher.
"I think I'd better keep studying," he decided and turned back to the scroll.
"That is wise, Ron-San," she smiled at him as she went back to work cleaning the kitchen around him.
~KP~
The man in the dark coat and a low-brimmed cap pulled low glanced around before he stepped forward, and sit down beside the man in casual clothes sitting on the bench at the bus stop. The man had a small tote at his side but wasn't paying much attention to it.
The man in the coat moved to sit beside him, setting an identical tote down beside the other.
He didn't look at the man in jeans and a pullover, but just murmured barely audible to any but the man beside him, "You succeeded?"
"Trust me, this stuff is the real deal. And it was damned hard to get. You would not believe the security around that damn kid's lab lately."
"I believe I would," the man declared and removed his hand from his own tote. "Bear in mind, I will know what is real from a fake. You do not wish to have tried duping me."
"No fakes, big guy," the man said, pointedly not even looking his way. "And as long as the cash adds up, I'd say our business is done."
"Money is hardly a concern for me. Only my goals matter. You have your payment, and as long as the samples are genuine and viable, we have a deal."
"Then we're done," the first man said and rose, picking up the second tote rather than his own. "Let me know if you need anything else. Just let things calm down before you try sending anyone back into that lab."
He paused, shouldering the tote, and then affected looking around before he glanced back, and smirked.
"Because I'm not kidding about security. I doubt anyone else could have gotten in there," he said smugly as he walked away.
The man in the heavy coat just pulled the tote over and tucked it into an inner pocket before he stood, turned back to the alley he had emerged from earlier, and disappeared back into the shadows. If anyone had tried to follow him, they would not have found him. He had vanished the moment he was covered by the alley's dimly lit recesses.
~KP~
Wade was preparing to shut down for the day, still working as hard as he could on finding ways to somehow help Kim and her new friend she claimed as her own daughter. Even with all he had learned from Dr. Director and Ron about alleged Elders and the preternatural, he was still determined to prove such beings had a logical basis and could be….
Well, maybe cured wasn't the right word. Still, he felt he could still bring the real Kim Possible back if given the chance. He had proven the change was blood-borne and could be ameliorated if one assessed and altered the right cellular components.
After another long fruitless day of trying to find new ways to move the viral components he had finally isolated back to normalcy, he was preparing to flush his older and now no longer useful samples and cultures before he left for the day. Even as he did, he eyed the small bin he had been using to store those older or useless specimens when he noted something amiss.
He reached into the small bin and lifted one small vial and gasped.
Rushing to the intercom, he slapped a big hand over the switch and all but shouted, "We've had an intruder in the lab," he told Dr. Director, his comm going directly to her office. "Someone has stolen samples from my work."
Wade wasn't too surprised to hear a siren go off almost instantly as lights turned red and flickered as the sounds of security hatches began to slam all around the lab.
Ignoring those sounds, he took the bin to his private workstation, opened his personal laptop, and began to try to assess just what had been taken. If he could figure out what, he could likely ascertain why, and maybe even narrow down a list of suspects. He could only hope it wasn't something really bad.
Wade soon learned he was to be disappointed.
Worse, he wasn't sure how to tell Kimberly about this lapse, because he knew she was going to be angry. He just hoped she wasn't too angry. Especially at him.
~KP~
Wade betrayed his own anxiety as he stood in Dr. Director's office, and looked over at Ron and Yori as Dr. Director sifted the pages before on her a file she held.
"All right. We know how it was done, but not yet who or why. According to this, and our video logs, Agent Douglas Firr came to check in on you at just after eleven while bringing you lunch as usual."
"Right. That I know of, he was the only one…."
"The problem is, Agent Firr has been on leave all week since he came down with a bad case of the flu," Dr. Director cut Wade off.
"So, an imposter. Someone that can blend in so well….?"
"Camille Leon," Ron cut Will off as the agent began to expound.
"You do know the imposter was male."
"You do know that crazed woman can look like anyone or anything she wants to be," Ron shot back.
"Enough. Du, put out an immediate want on Miss Leon, and let's find out who employed her because we all know this isn't her usual kind of job."
"Unless she was paid a lot for those samples."
"Pardon, but do we know exactly what was taken," Yori asked.
"Yes," Wade said. "Whoever did it, they used unmarked vials to try to fake the missing samples I had set aside to destroy. Only by tracking the missing labels, I was able to extrapolate what was taken, and they have three samples. One of Kim's diurnal blood serum. Two from Dana's initial blood and tissue samples."
"Crap," Ron said.
"Do you think the samples were taken at random or purposely selected," Dr. Director asked.
"Well, I'd have to say the former. If this were Camille, and Ron's right, she could have fooled all of us with ease, then she likely just grabbed the blood samples feeling they would be all she needed without worrying what they were, or how potent they were."
"How potent," Dr. Director asked.
"You know Kim and Dana require fresh blood to keep them alive and functioning now," Wade said somberly.
"Of course."
"So, the longer they go without, the more their systems begin to fail. They literally biologically shut down and atrophy to the point they cannot function. I have determined their blood and tissue works the same way even when separated from their body. Those samples were already decaying after being left long enough without nourishment that they began the process of cellular atrophy."
"So, are they useless to anyone that might….use them for….?"
"If someone is smart enough to add fresh blood to the samples, they can be reinvigorated," Wade admitted. "Something I learned early on. Even if the samples are left to completely atrophy and dry up, adding fresh blood immediately restores them. Likely how some of the myths of…."
"So, unless someone is smart enough…."
"If they sent Camille after them, they were smart enough," Ron cut in. "And it means they knew all about her, too. So, someone from WEE, or someone that was paying attention. We have to find them, and fast."
"That's….not the only problem here," Wade finally said.
"No," Ron asked.
"Who is going to tell Kim about this….slip up," Wade asked, obviously not wanting to be the man that owned up to the failure in security.
For a long moment, no one spoke. Then Dr. Director slowly nodded, saying, "I think I'd better speak to her myself. In the end, this comes down to my failure."
"You sure that's a good idea," Ron asked as Will stayed pointedly silent.
"Ronald, we both know Kimberly is….growing beyond most of us now. Only if I'm going to regain any semblance of respect in her eyes, I have to stand up. Will, you'd best stay here," she said and the man actually sighed in relief.
Which made her simply eye him.
"And we had best go now," Dr. Director said as she stood.
"We'll accompany you," Yori declared as Ron just glanced at her, and belatedly nodded.
"I'll try to upgrade our security so shape-shifters don't slip in so easily again," Wade said. "Just… Tell her I am sorry, and it won't happen again."
"Of course. Agent Du, find Miss Leon, and whoever hired her. We cannot allow this to create greater problems. Find them now," she said and left the office without looking back.
"Oh, man," Ron groaned as he and Yori followed her. "Kim's going to be mad."
"Indeed, Ron-San," Yori said quietly, finding their earlier words almost prophetic now.
To Be Continued….