Disclaimer: I do not own Kim Possible.
My dearest thanks to Screaming Phoenix and CajunBear73 for reviewing the last chapter. It's nice to have support every once in a while.
Everyone, please R&R and enjoy the chapter.
Ron let out a groan as he roused himself from the world of dreams. His head throbbed like someone had hit it repeatedly with a cudgel, and his left shoulder burned with pain. Blinking rapidly against the light, he opened his eyes.
The first thing he noticed was that he was bare-chest and strapped to a long metal platform by huge heavy steel braces. Turning his head to the left he saw that his left shoulder was covered in bandages. Lifting his head, Ron observed where he was.
He appeared to be in a circular cave, obviously man-made. Beneath the table he rested on was a simple metal grate covering a huge hole that Ron couldn't even see the bottom of, though from the smell Ron guessed it led to an underground lake or pond. To his right against the wall were thousands of large metallic devices that were covered in lights and switches. To his left was a classic evil entry way, with chrome and slid-y doors and everything. Directly in front of him was nothing but wall. And behind him stood Brent. He was hunched over a small table, his dirty blond hair just obscuring his eyes. He was dressed in slacks and a button up shirt that hung open over his back. In his hand was a pair of tweezers that were pinched over a small piece of metal. Then, without even looking up from the table, he spoke.
"Genius. This is pure Genius." He was muttering, like he didn't even realize Ron was conscious. He just continued his examination. "So small, yet so powerful. Covered world-wide, with accuracy down to a few inches! With sensors used to measure blood pressure, temperature, everything! Protected from short-circuiting from exposure to anything under life-threatening electric currents." Suddenly he raised his head and fixed his silver-grey eyes on Ron. "You must tell me who made this chip. It's Incredible!"
Ron raised his eyebrow; an expression he admitted must look amusing with his head hanging upside down over the edge of the table. "What chip?" he asked, attempting to put his scepticism in every word over his immense curiosity. Had he been chipped?
His question was answered immediately. "The one that was in your shoulder. Hadn't you known about it?"
"No." Ron answered immediately, feeling slightly deflated. Wade had chipped him? Without even telling him about it?
Brent shrugged his shoulder, obviously losing interest. He dropped the chip in a small dish, then turned to face his captive. "Well, whoever they were, they're in for a nasty shock. I accidently dropped the darn thing in my bucket of ice-water." Brent jerked his thumb at a small bucket sitting next to the table. "They probably think your dead right now."
Ron's eyes went wide. If Wade thought he was dead, then the first person he would inform would be Kim. And if she thought he was dead...
"Now," Brent said, clapping his hands and disrupting Ron's thoughts. "Shall we get to your accommodations?"
"Yeah." Ron replied, glancing at his chest. "I could do without the steel brace."
Brent laughed at this. "I'm sure you could. But I'm afraid you're going to have to suffer through that little annoyance. Now why don't we focus on your surroundings?" Brent then pointed skywards, once more wearing his evil smile. Looking up, Ron saw four pendants hanging from golden chains around him. They were all triangles made of white-gold, with a large gem in the center, circled by a group of smaller gems which were encased in a triangle of still-small gemstones. Ron saw the Eye of the Storm resting north of him, while the Heart of the Earth lay across form him to the south. The triangle to his left displayed a large sapphire as its centre piece, while the one to his left bore a bright red ruby. Directly above him in the ceiling lay a multi-faceted crystal through which Ron could see the blue sky above him.
"Beautiful, aren't they." Brent breathed, pure admiration dancing across his words. "It took me so long to acquire all for. You know the Eye of the Storm and the Heart of the Earth." Ron looked as Brent pointed to the respective triangle as he named them. He next pointed to the ruby triangle. "This is the Soul of the Inferno. And this," He pointed to the sapphire'd one "Is the Tear of the Sea. All four have been activated. Each pendant gives me incredible power over their respective element. But I want more. And that is where you come in." Brent walked around so that he could confront Ron face-to-face. "You see, I think I've found a way to channel all the energy," Brent drew a small golden disk threaded with rope and bearing a large crystal ball in the centre, "into this pendant. But in order to do that, I'll need a conduit. Something of tremendous power to channel the energies through. And my conduit, is you."
Brent smiled wickedly. "The ritual is simple, really." He made a quick gesture to the machinery on the right side of the cave. "First, I saturate the area with magnetic and electric energy. Then," Brent pointed to below Ron. "I stand beneath you with the pendant." A gesture to the crystal. "The crystal is connected to the outside. When it reaches noon, mere minutes away, it will reflect four perfect beams onto the pendants, which will then reflect it onto you via that small piece of glass in the centre of your brace." Ron leaned forward to verify that there was indeed a small, circular glass window in the centre of his brace. "With the combination of the saturated energy and my sublime command to transfer the power, the pendants will have no choice but to drain through you, and into my custom pendant. Then, the power will be mine."
"We'll see about that." Ron growled, trying to sound threatening. "My power's harder to control then you may think."
"Oh, I think I understand your power enough." Brent replied, removing his shirt completely and donning the pendant. Ron had to admit that Brent did look impressive bare-chested. His chest was made completely out of powerful, lean muscle. It actually made Ron feel a little self-conscious. Maybe once he got out of this, he'd work out some more. He was sure Kim wouldn't mind if he looked a little more like that, especially if he had during their last encounter... Ron shook his head to clear his thoughts. This was not the place, and defiantly not the time for thoughts like that. Brent was turning the machinery on, causing the cave to fill with a faint humming sound. Then, he went down the slope and disappeared from sight. With nothing better to do, Ron gazed up at the crystal, waiting.
The room was slowly getting brighter, as the crystal began to shine with sunlight. Ron began to breathe faster, trying to gain an adrenaline boost. He would need to act fast. He would probably only have a small window of opportunity to foil Brent's plan.
Then, suddenly, it was noon, and all of Ron's thoughts were halted as he was engulfed in a world of pain.
Hated this chapter. Very, VERY hard to write. Hope it was worth it.