The Hunt for Wild Game
Disclaimer – I don't own Kim Possible.
A/N – Thanks to all my readers and reviewers. This chapter took longer to post due to real life. My nephew graduated from High School and we had relatives visiting the whole weekend. It took a little while to get back in the swing of things. The next chapter is half finished. Note that ~O~O~O~ indicates major shift in time, place and focus. ~o~o~ indicates small shifts in time, place or focus.
I am still looking for a beta reader to help with spelling and grammar. If interested please contact me.
Chapter – 7 – The Hunt for Wild Game
Jack Hench sat at his solid mahogany, handcrafted desk, reviewing the quarterly reports of his company and its many subsidiaries. While many saw him as slick salesman, without morals or a conscience, he was in truth much more than that. A financial wizard to rival any on Wall Street, his greatest talent was in reading people. His chosen field, super-villain supply, was populated by some of the strangest, most unstable individuals in the world, yet he thrived by knowing what they wanted and supplying it for a price. His work was interrupted by a signal from his secretary.
"What is it? I said I was not to be disturbed except for an emergency." He answered testily.
"Sir, the Head of Computer Operations has a Class 1 alert." The secretary's voice was crisp and professional.
"What type code?"
"Damocles, Sir." Hearing that one word started Jack to sweating, afraid of what it could mean. Silently praying it was a simple error or case of mistaken identity, he ordered his secretary into action.
"Have him in my office in 5 minutes with all of the relevant information. As soon as he arrives, put us in secure mode, internal control only." The secretary immediately switched to the other line and conveyed Jacks orders, then prepared to activate the secure mode on the room.
Jack spent those five minutes in nervous review of current affairs, trying to find a cause for the Damocles alert. Nothing obvious came to mind and he was glad when Sylvester 'Sy' Sop, the Head of Computer Operations, entered the office, cutting off his fruitless recriminations. As soon as the doors closed, Jack pressed a button hidden under his desk that activated a second set of security features designed to make the room truly secure.
"What triggered the Damocles alert?" Jack demanded, wasting no time on pleasantries.
Pulling out his tablet, Sy tried to bring up a report. "An old account suddenly went active after almost 21 years of dormancy, sir. I have it right here. Sorry, there seems to be some trouble with the network, sir. Just a –."
Jack viciously cut him off. "We are in secure mode. There are no communications with the outside world. I ordered you to bring all of the relevant information. If you didn't follow that order, I will sell your contract to Gemini and then offer him a bounty for your quick termination. Again, what triggered the Damocles alert?"
Sy gulped in fear as he realized the situation was far more serious than he thought. He had assumed the Damocles alert was related to the account activation and was designed to make certain no one exploited a long dormant account. Rapidly calling up the relevant data on his tablet, he wondered again, if Hench's sky-high pay and benefits was worth the danger.
"I have it right here, Sir. As you can see, we have activity on an account that has been dormant for almost 21 years. Routine checks show the account was accessed using the latest E-phone and that all ID verifications were passed." Sy relaxed slightly as Jack nodded while glancing at the data being displayed.
"What account was it?" Hench's voice sounded almost nervous, but Sy dismissed the notion as silly.
"The account was for someone called Brainchild, Sir. They posted several requests for information on the forum and reactivated their Evil-secure payment account."
Jack gave a slight inward sigh when he heard the name. If she had activated her account, it probably had to do with her daughter. Handling the situation could be tricky, but nowhere near as bad as dealing with her mother-in-law. "What actions have you taken?"
"We have done nothing special, sir. So far, we followed protocol and treated the account like any other." Sy's composure had returned as he realized the trouble was someone else's problem, not his. He was just glad he had rejected one of his subordinate's suggestions to be 'proactive' and sequester the account.
"Good, I don't want anything done to this account without my personal permission." At Sy's nod, he continued. "For now, I want the account given Plutonium level credit and access to services."
Sy nodded again as he made a notation on his tablet, unable to believe what he had just heard. Plutonium level credit was for those few villains, such as Senor Senior Senior, who has vast personal fortunes and simply used the credit as a convenience while they arranged secure payment.
"Will there be anything else, Sir?" Sy asked, hoping business was concluded so he could return to his office, implement Hench's orders and update his resume.
"Transfer all the data you have to my system. I want all activities related to the Brainchild account sent to me immediately. Use the Dark Gorgon system. You are dismissed." Jack swiveled his chair to face the wall after deactivating the secure mode on the room. Sy rapidly made his exit after transferring the data, glad to have dodged the bullet for now.
Once he had left, Jack swiveled his chair around again and carefully examined the data Sy had left. It looked like Ann Possible was interested in the country of Plantain and any connections to Global Justice and the American intelligence agencies. From his confidential sources, he knew most of what had actually happened with Kim and Shego there, as well as the aftermath. He assumed her mother was interested in what had actually happened after the affair at the Space Center.
He would have to monitor the situation closely to insure nothing happened that would draw Nancy Possible's attention. He hoped, and desperately needed to believe, that a mother's concern for her daughter was all there was to the situation, that this wasn't the prelude to the endgame he had feared would come for almost twenty years. Once again, he cursed the day he first listened to Nancy Possible and her talk of special deals and the like. True, if he hadn't listened to her he would be anywhere near as rich and successful as he currently was, but he also wouldn't have to worry that it could all be taken from him at the drop of a hat.
~O~O~O~
Shego kept stealing glances at Kim as she drove the Range Rover over the broken rocky terrain. They had almost reached their destination near the Turkish border with Armenia and Kim was still staring out the window, lost in thought. At first Shego had let Kim sit in silence, assuming she was thinking over what had happened in Venice. Even by her standard, the situation had been very weird.
After capturing the so-called villain and his rat flunkies, Kim and Shego had collected Monique and Felix and headed back to the restaurant to settle the bill and then make an escape before GJ sent agents after them. To their surprise, by the time they reached the restaurant a dozen news crews were there, hailing them as heroes and clamoring for interviews. Kim and Shego were uncertain what to do when Monique stepped forward and started to answer the questions the reporter posed.
After listening to her explanation of old friends having dinner who simply helped out, Kim and Shego added their own answers. They told of Kim retiring from being a hero to live a normal life and of Shego reforming. They told of a chance meeting in Venice where they were both seeing the sights and then an encounter with some of Kim's old friends. The told of encountering the villain and helping out, no big. In an inspired flash Shego even told of the noble Global Justice agents who immediately stopped to help those who were stranded in the water after the villain sank their boats. In the end, they had received the thanks of both the city and Global Justice.
Kim had given her a strange look when she said it, but let it pass until later. Once they had returned to their suite, Kim no longer held her silence.
"What's the deal with praising Global Justice? I can see not attacking them unless we have proof of wrong doing but there is no way I will praise them." Kim's face was set.
"Princess, you need to think this over. I didn't praise Global Justice; I praised a couple of their agents. The agents are low level and know nothing about you, me or the truth about Global Justice. Being nice to them will hopefully plant seeds of doubt that will sprout should Betty ever accuse us of a crime without proof. Besides, think of the look on Betty's face when she finds out that Global Justice thanked us for our help." Shego tried to hold her laughter in but failed and was soon joined by Kim as they thought about Betty's reaction to the day's events.
After that, they turned in for the night. While they didn't expect any immediate attack from GJ, they only trusted their good graces for one night. In the morning, they checked out and used some of Shego's old contacts to arrange transportation to a small island in the Aegean. Once they settled in, they considered their options.
They had logged into Condor's old AUNT system and from there they had accessed GJ's system, only to find that most of the system was locked down. Most routine data was still available but almost every ongoing mission assignment was now classified and many of the personal assignment and equipment requisition files they had used in planning the attack on the Space Center were also classified. Kim threw a frustrated look at Shego.
"Does this mean my system is compromised? Why else would GJ suddenly start classifying so much normal data?"
Shego didn't answer as she started looking over what data they could access. After several moments, Kim joined her. Kim pointed to an item in the standing orders file.
"According to this, Betty's simply enforcing the rules that were already in place."
Shego brought up another item. "Looks like she restricted access to GJ data for a number of intelligence agencies, too. I think she is just tightening security all around and not reacting to anything specific we did. My guess is that if she knew of your access to the system, she would have either cut off all access or planted data to lead us into a trap."
Kim nodded and called up what little data was available on their next target, an arms shipment via some corrupt government officials to a Triad. "Based on what data there is, it looks like the arms shipment has been canceled."
Shego nodded. "That makes sense. If old Cyclops is tightening security, the last thing she would want is for something like an illegal arms shipment to be exposed. We just have to find a new target."
Kim grunted her agreement and they two spent the next hour or so combing through the files looking for likely targets. They used old duty rosters, supply schedules and types of personnel assigned to find a likely target. When they were finished, they had narrowed the list to three. Two were laboratories where questionable research was going on, while the third was an illegal listening post on the Turkish border near Armenia.
"I think either of the labs would be a good choice. They would show the world that Global Justice is no better than any other villain group."
Shego shook her head. "I don't think so, cupcake. Both of them are independent labs under contract to GJ. Look at how Betts wormed out of trouble at the Space Center. If we hit one of the labs, she will simply blame the scientists and say she had no idea what was happening."
Kim made a wry face. "I'm shocked, shocked to learn there is gambling in this establishment." She quoted bitterly.
Shego gave a wry smirk in reply. "That's the way the world works sometimes, pumpkin. We have to take things as they are. Let's save the labs for later, after we have exposed a few more of GJ's dirty secrets and Betty doesn't have anyone who will believe her lies. The listening post is the best target. It is a pure Global Justice base so they can't blame its existence on someone else. Given that, they have neither Turkish nor UN permission to be there, it will be hard to cover up its existence. Plus given how volatile the region is, once word of its existence leaks out, Betty will have to spend months dealing with the fallout."
Kim had briefly considered the options before agreeing with Shego with a smile on her face.
"As a bonus, if we can get access to their computer system, we can use it to find all of GJ's real goodies." With a pair of evil smirks on their faces, they spent the rest of the day arranging transportation, obtaining the needed gear and determining the exact method they would use to enter the post. Once everything was ready, they had set out.
Shaking her head to clear it of memories, Shego glanced at Kim again and found her still gazing out the window. Knowing she would need Kim alert and active for their mission to succeed, she pulled the truck to the side of the track, shut off the engine and turned to face Kim.
Belatedly realizing they had stopped Kim turned to Shego. "Have we reached our starting point? This doesn't look like the correct place."
Shego smirked at her. "No, we have another ten miles to go. I stopped now because you need to get your head in the game or I will have to leave you behind."
Instead of sparking Kim's competitive spirit, the taunt was ignored. "If that's what you want. I really don't care."
Concern written on her face, Shego grabbed Kim's shoulder. "What's the matter, Kimmie? This isn't about Venice is it? I thought we settled that."
Kim sighed heavily. "No, – well yes, – I." Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves. "It just seems that since Venice I have been doubting myself. It's been almost five years since I was saving the world and everyone still remembered me and hailed me as a hero. Even the GJ agents were calling me a hero instead of trying to arrest me. It's . . . just so confusing."
Shego smiled slightly, glad the problem was one she could handle. "You want to know if you can go back to being a hero, right?" At Kim's nod, she continued. "You could return to being a hero, Betty and GJ kept your probation secret and publicly no one knows of your latest escapades. But, you have to remember that the rest of your life won't go back to the way it was. Your won't have seen your friends in years and they will still be scattered around the world. You can visit your family again but that won't make up for the years you were forced apart. Global Justice will escape punishment for what they did to us and for what happened to everyone in Plantain."
Kim looked at Shego, a fire burning in her eyes. "You are right. I can't get back what I lost. GJ still has to pay for what they did. I won't let them get away with pretending to be the heroes when they're really the villains. They have ruined and taken too many lives to go unpunished. Let's go."
Shego grinned back at Kim and, putting the Range Rover in gear, started down the track again.
~O~O~
In half an hour, they were pulling their climbing gear from the back of the Range Rover as they surveyed their target, perched halfway up the side of a steep, craggy mountain. Global Justice thought the location made the post secure from invasion but Kim and Shego were determined to prove them wrong. Shielded from most normal means of detection and all but inaccessible except via a hidden tunnel or hoverjet, the post had few other security measures, an oversight they meant to exploit.
Within minutes, they were scaling the side of the mountain headed for a ventilation shaft cut into the middle of a shear fifty-foot cliff. The only practical way to reach it was to climb to the cliff top via another route. Once they were at the cliff top, they secured ropes and lowered themselves to the opening. After a brief check for alarms and security systems, they entered the shaft.
Kim smirked at Shego. "I guess you were right, these guys are as dense as Drakken. They still leave the ventilation system unprotected."
Shego rolled her eyes. "Yea, yea, princess, let's get this show on the road."
Without comment, Kim turned and started crawling down the shaft towards the post. Shego sat enjoying the view for a moment before shaking herself and following Kim. Soon they had reached the main portion of the post and started checking on its inhabitants via the ventilation grills. Kim silently indicated that three men were in the main operations area while Shego indicated two were in the mess and four were in the bunk area. A flurry of silently signals passed between them and they split up, Kim heading to the mess area and Shego heading for the main operations area.
One Kim reached the mess area; she kicked the grill out and leapt into the room. The two men were completely surprised by her sudden appearance and could put up no effective resistance to Kim's attack. Soon they lay unconscious on the floor, bound and gagged, as Kim exited the room in the direction of the bunk area.
Shego had swiftly gotten into position over the main operations area. She silently removed the grill and dropped to the floor directly adjacent to the two agents operating the main console. She reached out a hand to each and they fell soundlessly back into their chairs, rendered unconscious by her knock our plasma. Sensing something wrong, the third agent had turned, only to be met by Shego's fist, which sent him crashing into the wall. He slumped to the floor unconscious as Shego bound and gagged the other two. Once she had taken care of the third agent she started down the hallway towards the bunk are.
After meeting in the hallway outside the bunk area, they quickly entered the room and subdued its four occupants. Shego stayed to bind and gag them while Kim returned to operations area to get ready for the next part of their plan. Making certain all of the captives were securely bound with their faces clearly visible and their Global Justice credentials lying next to their heads, Shego followed Kim to the operations area.
In the operations room, Kim was busy typing on the keyboard to the main system. A variety of data was flashing across the various screens, some staying displayed and some being removed based on Kim's judgment of its usefulness. A nearby door to the main server room was open and a device about the size of a large briefcase could be seen connected to the main server hub. Waiting for Kim to finish, Shego opened her pack and removed a high-definition video camera and small module that she fit over her mouth. Looking up and seeing her ready, Kim flashed her a smile.
"All ready here. Since the agents were still logged in, we didn't have any problem accessing the system. I have displays set with each of the agent's personnel records near where they are tied up. In here, I have current status updates showing message intercepts from Armenia, Iran, coalition forces in Iraq, Syria, Israel, Russia and Ukraine. Their entire system should be copied to ours in another five minutes. Why don't you get started and I will take care of the decoy and signaling device then meet you at the ventilation shaft."
Shego's voice was rough and broken from the voice distorter she wore. "See you then, pumpkin. Don't get distracted." She giggled silently at the humorous sound of her voice as she headed for the main entrance, while Kim set off for the hanger level.
~O~O~O~
Brainchild sat at her desk, fighting the urge to sneeze and wishing she had done more maintenance on her hideout or at least cleaned it once in a while. Of course, when she sealed the place up and quit her old life twenty odd years ago, she had never expected to need to use it again. At the time, her new mother-in-laws advice about keeping her options open had seem silly but now, with everything that had happened with Kim and the boys, she wished she had done more.
A soft ding from her main computer system, a new EBM Mastermind 5000 from Hench Co., pulled her from her musings. Seeing that the results of her latest search were available, she was glad she had taken advantage of credit Hench had offered her, even though she knew it was done mostly to keep Nancy from getting involved. That credit had allowed her to update most of her old equipment without needing to use any of her hidden funds, funds whose use might have drawn the wrong people's attention. As annoyed as she was with her mother-in-law, right now, she was glad that the mere threat of the old woman's attention had Hench jumping through hoops.
As she read through the contents of the latest results, she felt a chill race up her spine and settle over her mind. If what she read was true, then Nancy was in for world of trouble. A cold grin crossed her face as she thought of the irony of her mother-in-law's influence getting her access to the resources she would use to destroy her. Humming a jaunty tune to herself, she called up the order page on the Hench Co. website and started shopping.
~O~O~O~
Once Shego had finished the video, she grabbed their computer system from the server room and went to meet Kim. Kim, in the mean time, had set one of the hoverjets to act as a decoy and planted a GPS beacon on a timer in the hanger before making her way to ventilation shaft they had used to enter the base. Making certain they had removed all of their equipment, they rappelled down the cliff face and then swiftly made their way back to the Range Rover. Once again, Shego drove, while Kim opened her laptop and activated its satellite modem.
"So, Kimmie, who is getting a copy of the video?" Shego asked as she drove towards the border with Georgia.
Kim hummed happily, as she typed away for several minutes before answering. "The major news organizations in each of the countries that had signals intercepted as well as most of the major news organizations in the rest of the world. I also sent copies to the military and intelligence agencies in each of the affected countries."
"Harsh, princess, harsh. Cyclops is going to have her hands full just stopping a war from starting, let alone covering up. What if none of the media outlets run the story? I mean, Betty has spiked storied before."
Kim smiled at her. "No big. One of the people on the list is Martin 'Mac' Rucker over at GNN, he'll run anything."
Shego laughed, knowing that the president, founder and only employee of GNN, the Gossip and News Nexus, would indeed run any story no matter how outlandish or untrue. Kim hooked up the data store containing the information from the post to her laptop and began searching the data.
Shego glanced at her. "So, cupcake, anything good?"
Kim frowned. "Not so far. Most of the data is heavily encrypted and part of a program called SNITCHeS."
Shego snickered. "Snitches?"
"Yep, SNITCHeS, the System for Networking, Interfacing and Tabulating Criminals Hidden Secrets. Must be pretty important, since the files are encrypted even though someone with clearance was logged in. Ah, here is what we want, a list of covert bases and operations. Let's see what goodies we can find." A happy little evil grin spread across Kim's face.
~O~O~O~
The normally raucous patrons of the bar, located in one of the seedier sections of Buenos Aires, were abnormally quiet that night. Most sat sipping their drinks and stealing covert glances at the cause of their silence. Sitting alone at a booth in the rear of the bar was a large, muscular man dressed in an ill-fitting suit. Normally the local patrons would not tolerate an outsider being in their bar but, based on the man's Russian accent and numerous tattoos, they knew he was a vor of the Brother's Circle Bratva and, therefore, a man not to be trifled with. So far, the man hadn't caused any trouble, simply sitting there silently, drinking copious amounts of vodka. They only hoped that whatever business the man had there, it was finished quickly, and without excessive bloodshed.
Their eyes were drawn to a strange man entering the bar in an overcoat with the collar turned up and a hat pulled low over his face. They held their collective breaths as he walked straight to the man in the back and spoke briefly to him.
~O~O~
He had been sitting at the dingy bar for over an hour, wearing the shape of a Russian mobster, waiting for the head of the local gang to contact him and he was growing impatient. He didn't let any of the shock and surprise he felt show on his face when the man in the overcoat and hat approached him. Once the man stood in front of his table, he simply leaned forward and commanded in a low tone.
"Follow me."
"Yes, master." Without another word, he rose from his seat and followed the man into the street.
After making their way through a maze of back street and alleys, the men arrived at a large, once opulent house. Using a key, the man in the overcoat opened the door and led the other man to a room in the cellar. Once the door was secured, the man removed his hat and overcoat then took a seat in the only chair in the room, a large carved oak antique resembling a throne. The large man waited for him to speak first.
"Mask, I do not like having to search for you when I want a report. In the future you will make certain I know how to contact you." The voice was soft and cultured, with a hint of steel underneath.
"Yes, master. I will comply." The tone of the large man's voice was surprisingly subservient.
"And get rid of that form. There is no one here to impress or intimidate." With a nod, the large man dropped his head and concentrated. Gradually his form started to shift and flow, his height shrinking, his build slimming and the tattoos disappearing, until a normal looking man, one who would blend into any crowd, stood there. Once he was finished changing, the man in the seat nodded.
"Good. Now we may begin. What is the status of Possible? Putting her on probation was supposed to make it easier for Global Justice to recruit her. Once she was bound by their rules, she would no longer be a threat."
"The problem was the government of Plantain decided her probation wasn't enough. They bribed the official in charge of her case to do everything he could to ruin her life. Once Possible turned twenty-one and her probation ended, she disappeared after vowing to destroy Global Justice by exposing their secrets. Her first action was to break Shego out of Global Justice's Super-Max prison. Possible and Shego then targeted a satellite being launched by Plantain with Global Justice's backing. Their current whereabouts are unknown."
The seated man's face showed only a slight frown to indicate displeasure but that small sign was enough to cause Mask to worry. "Why was I not informed of this immediately? What has been done to rectify the situation?"
Mask swallowed nervously. "I did not learn of the situation until the oversight committee was being briefed about the background to the prison break. I did not inform you at that time as I felt the situation was time critical, that any delay would risk things getting worse. I instructed the committee to allow Dr. Director to keep her increased freedom for the moment but to encourage other agencies to work against her." He surveyed the seated man's face some sign and found none.
"I believe that Global Justice will be too occupied with the threat from Possible and the various agencies to be able to work against your plan. I also calculated that with Possible fixed on her revenge she would not notice our activities until it was too late. I have already taken care of the problem with Plantain."
Indicating his acceptance of the explanation with the barest inclination of his head, the seated man motioned for him to continue. "Since then, I have been making sure none of our operations has any traceable connection with Global Justice. I was afraid of such evidence falling into Possible's hands during the course of her crusade against Global Justice and alerting her to our plans."
The man stood in nervous silence until his superior spoke. "Very well, I accept your actions in this case. There is one threat you have not taken into consideration. Kim's mother is in play again. I suspect this is at Nancy Possible's instigation. Be careful that neither of them receives any information relating to our activities. If either of them does find anything, eliminate them both. In the future do not wait to contact me should there be a major development."
Without another word, the man in the chair rose and left the room, leaving the other man standing by himself. He waited five minutes before leaving the room himself, knowing the punishment for following his master too closely would be both long and painful. Even with all the power and influence he had accumulated over the years working for the man, he still feared to challenge him. This whole meeting was testament to the man's power. He had only come to Buenos Aires six hours ago while impersonating a major criminal, to use the man's connections, and his master still found him without trouble.
It was always that way. No matter what disguise he used or identity he assumed, his master could always find him without effort. That shouldn't surprise him, when he was still a teen and using his newfound power to alter his appearance for petty crime; his master had found him, offering to train him to use his power to the fullest and a place in his plan. Sometimes he yearned for those earlier, more carefree days, when life had been harder but he was his own man. Shaking his head, he dismissed such dreams from his mind, knowing his master would never let him simply leave.
~O~O~O~
A/N – Kim and Shego strike their first major blow against Global Justice.The next chapter Action and Reaction - 8 - Bagging the Limit, has more on what Ann/Brainchild is up to, exactly what was on the video Shego shot and an update on Dr. Director, the Du brothers and Global Justice.