Chapter 6 – On Top of the World
Although it was left behind, the Louts Blade was not forgotten. From the path on his way back to the jet Ron gave a mental command that the weapon, that as of this fight had twice served its master, return to Yamanouchi. Restoring itself to sword form, the weapon vanished from the pit where it had lain.
He believed it when Drakken spoke of another challenge. He doubted, however, that Drakken would tell him where he was holding Kim after this next challenge ended. But Ron would still find her somehow.
Returning to the location where he discarded his backpack he picked it up. Before putting the backpack on, from it he pulled out the Kimmunicator. He then called Wade to ask how he was going to get to Kuala Lumpur. Wade informed him that the flight plan has already been programmed into the jet's navigation system. Wade also arranged to have another tanker aircraft rendezvous with and refuel the jet once it was out over the Indian Ocean.
After putting away the Kimmunicator Ron resumed a weary trek to his ride. Stealthily racing ahead of him, Drakken's cameras boarded and took to individual hiding spots. The rest of the world would have an hours-long intermission, but Drakken ensured that one of the cameras captured Stoppable so that he alone could monitor the boy's activities until he arrived in Malaysia; they would remain undiscovered.
Once aboard his jet Ron ascended the stairwell which retracted after he was aboard. Then the hatch closed. It would be a few hours before his next landing which meant he could rest, something he was suddenly looking forward to. He had only gotten a little rest after taking off from Greece. Not since his first journey to Yamanouchi back during the student exchange program had he worked his way about so much terrain; that was just walking and carrying some luggage. Today it was walking, climbing, balancing, fighting, dodging, and to top it all off that stunt to stop all those darts. Not even missions with Kim had been this trying. So much of his energy had been spent during the past number of hours, but it was worth it if it meant finding her.
After the jet was finally airborne Ron went to clean up and change into new mission gear. He then decided it was time to get some sleep. He was about to lie down when a voice called him. "Stoppable-san." The voice was Sensei's. The elderly apparition appeared, levitating in his usual meditative position.
Ron greeted him from where he sat on his sleep station. "What's up?"
"I am here only long enough to advise you that after your rest you meditate and also practice to further condition your skills. With each trial you pass your adversary will only make the next trial more difficult."
"More like keep them going which is what he seems to be doing."
"That is true. But I believe your quest will end before long. Farewell until next time, Stoppable-san."
Before the old man could vanish Ron stopped him. "Sensei!" The apparition remained and waited for him to go on. "Can you tell me anything that will help against my next opponent?"
"Yes," Sensei added as his image dissolved. "Be careful." Then he was gone.
Ron had expected better advice than that. At the least, something that would tell him about his opponent. 'Cryptic as usual,' he thought as he rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Later, Sensei," he wearily added out loud. Ron then instructed the pilot to wake him in three hours. Then he lay down to sleep. Rufus curled up nearby to do the same.
Drakken scratched his head. "Who was he talking to?" He could hear Ron speaking, but knew not who he was speaking to. "Who is Sensei?" The camera that captured Ron saw only him, the mole rat, and the robotic pilot. There was no one else there.
The broadcast of Ron ended after the Kuala Lumpur challenge was issued. For those who had been watching or listening, they went back to their usual routine - returning to work or school, or getting some sleep – until the next time he would be televised. When peopled talked, by way of media or neighborhood gossip, a major topic was of the Team Stoppable fights. There were those who talked of the events as being the greatest reality TV show to date and those who protested it because someone's life was placed in real danger. Romantics saw something else, and many talked dreamily of how much Ron and Kim must mean to each other that he would put himself in great danger to find her.
Gamblers had been taking advantage of the challenges. Bets were being placed on whether Stoppable would win or lose, live or die. Further, wagers were made even beyond the upcoming fight in Kuala Lumpur. People bet on whether or not Ron would find Kim Possible.
Kim turned her monitor off when the broadcast ended just after Drakken ordered Ron to go to the Petronas Towers. Hoping that Ron would be okay and would get some rest before he arrived in Malaysia, Kim then decided to work off some restlessness and apprehension by practicing some kung fu and cheer routines.
As her workout progressed she began to think about Ron and his abilities and her current situation. With what has mysteriously happened to Ron she began to wonder if their roles would be switching, because now it was she who had become the captive. When they first began, she was the hero and he the sidekick; she was the knight and he the damsel in distress. ("And yet he still got the girl," she heard from the back of her mind.) Now here she is, Maid Kimberly in the dragon's lair waiting for Prince Ronald the First to rescue her.
Kim stopped her routine and shook her head to dismiss those thoughts. "No, not anymore. There's no more hero or sidekick station. We're more than a team, we're a couple, for Pete's sake!" That reminder made her smile. They are girlfriend and boyfriend, yes, but it is a partner coming to rescue a partner. Feeling much better, she decided she had done enough and decided to rest for a while until Ron arrived in Malaysia.
Shego's thoughts were also on Ron Stoppable. Presently Drakken had no need of her assistance so she was out in the cavern walking alone. The one thing about the boy that intrigued her, the one thing she was anxious to see, was what his newest maneuver would be; what new stunt he would be capable of.
Because he is a very dear friend to her, Yori felt that going to Malaysia before Ron was the right thing to do. This Doctor Drakken never said that Ron could not have help, so, without Sensei's permission or knowledge, she prepared for the journey to help her friend. Even if anyone at Yamanouchi suspected she might go, especially Sensei, no one barred her departure. Dressed in civilian attire, Yori hastened to the nearest airport to take the earliest available plane to Malaysia.
She arrived at the towers at dusk. Initially uncertain where to go, she closed her eyes and thought of Ron, gently touching her forehead with her right-hand fingertips. Yori knew his skills were progressing, and after fighting on a battleground such as the last, she wondered what could possibly prove an even more difficult setting. When she finally realized the only possible location her eyes opened and she looked upward, openmouthed, her face coming away from her hand, to the Skybridge above. Her eyes widened in horror and her breathing turned shaky with dread. She did not fear heights. She feared for Ron, realizing that he would be fighting one hundred and seventy meters above the ground; that he could fall to his death if his opponent was deadly and more powerful than he. She would not believe there was anyone better than him, but his opponent had to be very skilled to go against him up there. He just might need her help with this one.
Yori hurried inside to the Tower 1 lobby. Security verified that the contents of her backpack were non-threatening and let her in. She hurried to the forty-second floor, entered a lavatory, and changed into her ninja gi. After finding her way to the Skybridge rooftop – she cared not if she set off alarms that would summon security – the teen ninja stepped cautiously forward in the direction of Tower 2, keeping alert. She was relieved that for the present the wind was calm, even if a strong gust could happen along at any time. She looked all around; there was no movement. She listened; there was no sound but the wind. Yori was certain she had come to the right location where Ron would face his opponent. Perhaps it was Ron this opponent was waiting for.
There was one way to draw out such a person. "I am Yori of Yamanouchi!" she announced, taking a defiant stance. "I challenge the one who waits for Stop-" Yori interrupted herself. She would say his full name for the purpose of this challenge. "Ron Stoppable!" Her outcry received no response.
Then, faster than the girl could blink, something took her.
From his lair Drakken heard the challenge. Looking at the monitor that showed the Skybridge rooftop he saw the teen girl. He knew not who she was nor did he care where she might have come from. But she mentioned Ron's name and offered to fight in the boy's absence.
"So, the buffoon has allies," Drakken noted. He picked up a transmitter. "Capture her," he ordered, figuring that another captured friend of the boy's, right there on location, might make for a good handicap. Drakken watched as she was quickly seized.
Ron's sleep was disrupted by the repeated sensation of tapping on his forehead. After finally opening his eyes, he slowly became aware of Rufus being responsible for the wakeup call. "I'm up," he wearily said to the mole rat and slowly sat up.
He turned towards the cockpit when he heard the robotic pilot speak. "I did attempt to wake you as instructed, Mr. Stoppable. The mole rat was the first to awaken which then proceeded to physically wake you when you would not respond."
"I guess I was more tired than I thought," Ron replied while stretching. He then stood and went up to look out through the cockpit windows to find that nighttime was on the eastern horizon. "Where are we?"
"We are currently flying over the Andaman Sea, forty eight kilometers north of Sumatra and five hundred and fifty-five kilometers from the Malaysian coastline. While you rested," the pilot went on, "the jet was replenished with J200 rocket fuel. Mr. Load also alleged you would be hungry, so he placed an order from Bueno Nacho for you."
Both Ron and Rufus gasped and looked at the pilot. "Really?" Ron eagerly asked.
The pilot pressed a button on the console to its left. Ron and Rufus' attention was drawn by the sound of a compartment door opening from the jet's midsection. A large tray slid out from the compartment. The duo quickly went to see what had been delivered. "Mr. Load was unsure of what you would prefer, so he had several choices sent," the pilot explained.
Before them were several plates, each piled with nacos, queseridos, chimeritos, some tortada salad, chips and extra cheese, and drinks. Gladly did they eat, but remembering Sensei's instructions Ron ensured he would not overeat, although Rufus helped himself to as much as he could stomach. As they ate, a call from Wade reported there was no positive identity on any opponent at the towers as there were still a great number of occupants in both buildings and pedestrians passing through the fifty eight meters long Skybridge that connected the two buildings. What was not eaten was then sealed and saved for later, for there would likely come another challenge.
Feeling replenished, Ron decided to let his stomach settle as he began his meditation, letting go of the past hours of stress to both mind and body. Once that was done and he was feeling much better, he decided to train and condition himself with part of the forty six minutes that remained before landing. Rufus joined him, doing his own routine. When the pilot reported they would be on the ground in ten minutes, both stopped in order to use that time to relax from working out.
After the jet was granted authorization to land in Malaysia and the jet came to a stop, Ron deplaned with Rufus and took a train to the towers. Drakken's cameras followed suit, going active to re-broadcast Team Stoppable en route to the latest battleground. Once at the brightly lit Petronas Towers after nearly thirty minutes of travel Ron entered the lobby of Tower 1. A transmission from Drakken instructed Ron to go up to the Skybridge on the forty-second floor where his latest adversary awaited him, along with a surprise. Ron was hopeful it would be Kim, but Wade reported that there was no bio-DNA readout indicating that she was even in the city.
Having arrived at the forty-second floor, Ron went to the Skybridge tunnel. Pulling out his Kimmunicator he contacted Drakken. "Okay, I'm here. Where's my opponent?"
Smirking, Drakken raised an index finger and waved it cockily. "Uh, uh, uhhh." He stopped waving his finger but kept it pointing upward. Then he tilted his head back and cast his eyes upward.
It took but a second for Ron to follow suit, realizing that Drakken wanted him to do the same. Ron huffed and his shoulders sank. Drakken wanted him outside on the bridge roof. He looked back down at the Kimmunicator screen and Drakken nodded, confirming what the boy surmised.
"Don't worry. The sensors have long been disabled, so you won't set off any alarms," Drakken explained. "That's why security never came to rescue an acquaintance of yours who presently awaits you out there." With a grin and a twitch of his brow, he bade Ron farewell with, "Have fun," and his image went away before Ron could ask what he meant.
Setting his backpack down, Ron went out, despite Wade's warning that it was beginning to get windy outside.
Pleas from those such as Ron's parents, and even the Possibles, went pointlessly out to Ron when all they were doing was shouting at their television screens for him to not go outside.
He stepped out onto the roof to find that the wind had picked up, but it was not dangerously strong. The meditation had certainly been helpful, for he was not driven to dizziness and panic from being so high up. Looking around he saw no one waiting to fight him no matter which way he looked. But Drakken had also mentioned an 'acquaintance,' yet nobody but he was there on the roof. Ron was alone with Rufus, who remained in his designated pocket.
At a moment when the wind calmed to near silence, Ron's ears heard a different sound. A muffled sound. It came from ahead of him. Taking a couple of steps forward and searching, his eyes found a darkly dressed figure… gagged and tied to the side of the Skybridge! He was now close enough and there was just enough light for him to realize, to his wide-eyed shock, that it was Yori.
Ron ran toward her, intent on pulling her up to safety and freeing her. He barely closed the distance between them when something long hit the roof of the bridge right in front of him, forcing Ron to quickly halt and jump back in surprise. He looked at the thing and then upward. It extended from the roof all the way to something clinging to the outer wall of the Tower 1 twin. It looked strangely human. Ron was unsure he knew who or what that could be. But when he caught the red-lit eyes, something in his memory clicked. It was a Bebe! She retracted her metallic arm and climbed down to the bridge roof, and seconds after was joined by two others. The first one stood beside her and the other behind Ron.
The one behind him moved, stepping forward. Ron turned a quarter of the way to his right so that he could keep alert of the two Bebes to his left and the third to his right. The third was the closest, no more than fifteen meters away. But distance was irrelevant. These mechanical femme fatales were very fast. And they could contort and extend their limbs in ways that could make their movements, without a doubt, unpredictable. How could he keep up? How would he beat them?
At a moment when Ron turned from the two at his left to the one at his right, the second Bebe to appear on the bridge charged and stood before Ron in a heartbeat. He felt the motion and flinched when he saw her right there. Composure regained, he attempted to hit her using punching and kicking combinations, but as he suspected she twisted her figure to avoid every move. As fast as he tried to be, she was faster. This had to be very amusing to Drakken.
There were sounds coming from Rufus' pocket. Ron's leg movements had obviously been discomforting for the mole rat, and the little guy might be hurting. Ron held out his hands in the directions of both ends of the bridge, gesturing for a momentary ceasefire. The Bebes held their positions. He pulled Rufus from his pocket, holding him gently in his gloved hands and apologizing. While he comforted his friend he began thinking. If that last technique that had come to him so suddenly in the jungle was able to stop darts, he hoped it would work in holding them back until they wore down or broke themselves. Closing his eyes, he breathed and focused and concentrated on developing the energy for the shield. Then, feeling ready, he set Rufus down and told him to get over by Yori and stay with her. Rufus complied and after the mole rat was safely out of the way, Ron stood to face the single Bebe and gave her a come hither gesture with his right hand.
By Drakken's command she obliged him. The Bebe charged forward. Ron's speed matched hers and in a blink his hands went up. But she never touched him. She collided into and bounced off of something unseen, less than ten centimeters from his palms. Ron felt the impact, too, flinching at the contact. He realized that this was still a new technique, and until he fully mastered and became accustomed to it he was taking a great risk that this might get more stressful than he was ready for.
And it did become more than he could handle. With one mind the Bebes analyzed the incident and calculated. With an increase in speed and force, plus another one of them, he would not be able to hold two of them back. A second strike would end him. With synchronized movements the two Bebes together repeated the charge. Ron repeated his move, but the impact was so intense that it felt as if his shield was used against him like a pinball plunger launching the ball. And just like a pinball caught in a magnetic trap, an airborne Ron was caught by the third Bebe, whose arms extended several meters to grab him. Her arms retracted, bringing closer to her form a gravely disoriented Ron Stoppable.
Upon receiving an order from Drakken, Bebe Number 3 complied and threw Ron from the bridge. Ron's mind cleared in time to see himself get cast away. Yori, tied and helpless, could do nothing but bear witness in horror to the sudden plummeting of the one she could only ever love as a friend. All the world watched as he fell, further and further into the darkness, his cries fading away to silence.
From their home the Stoppables cried; their only child was gone. From their home the Possibles cried; a brave and noble young man was gone. From her cell Kim cried; her boyfriend was gone.
Drakken, too, cried… in victory. "Booya!" And he danced a jig.
Shego felt a twinge of disappointment, for she had hoped to see Stoppable try some new move.
Drakken's celebration was cut short at the sound of a new cry. "Stoppable-san!" That was no cry of despair. It was the sound of someone jubilant - the ninja girl tied to the Skybridge. He looked at the monitor and just could not believe what he was seeing.
The world, including those who were mourning, could only stare at their screens, jaw-dropped and dumbstruck at the floating figure surrounded by a blue glow. The ninja girl smiled, relieved that Ron was still alive, and feeling honored to be the first to witness in person his newest ability.
"Surprised?" everyone heard him call out to the Bebes. "I'll bet you are!" The world certainly was.
Tears that were of mourning turned to tears of joy and relief.
Mrs. Stoppable looked her husband. "Honey, that's our boy." She hugged him tightly and repeated happily, "That's our boy!"
With his arms around his wife, he smiled proudly. "That's our boy."
"That's our boy!" said an overjoyed Mrs. Dr. P, holding her husband. He agreed.
Jim and Tim, high-fived. "Hicka-bicka-boo. Hoosha!"
Once she had finally settled down from her astonishment, Kim lay back on her cot, resting her head against her hands, and smiled. "That's my Ron."
There was but one question that could only be on the minds of everyone else around the world. "Since when can he do that?!"
Steve Barkin, who at times was a thorn to Ron, but who also had a decent side to him, could not help but smile. "Way to go, Stoppable." And he honored the boy with a salute.
During his decent Ron stopped screaming, and then stopped his limbs from flailing about. Curling up and balling his fists, he closed his eyes and focused. "C'mon, c'mon, c'mon!" He could feel it. With a little more determination from within, a blue-lighted field came to life. His fall slowed and with control he stopped. Opening his eyes he could see how it surrounded him. It framed his form, unlike the one Sensei had which encased him in a sphere. And the sensation he felt. He felt reenergized. He felt reborn.
Images appeared, presences Ron neither saw nor sensed. It was a levitating Sensei joined by the little Oracle and his shoulder-mounted monkey. The two looked at each other and high-fived.
Ron sighed with relief. "Thank you, Sensei." In his head the old master welcomed him.
He was wowed at seeing how close he had come to his death. He was just over twenty meters from the ground. Looking up, he then drifted skyward towards the bridge for a rematch with the Bebes, to free Yori, and finally demand Drakken tell him where he is hiding.
After his surprise return, Ron looked away from the Bebes and found the hovering cameras floating in the air all around him. He could not help but smile when an urge pressed at him and there was only one way to quell it. As he hovered he raised his arms and waved them at the cameras, crying out, "Hi Mom!" And then he could not help but laugh imagining everyone who watched him do that falling over floored. Then he landed on the bridge, with the blue aura still surrounding him.
Ron looked at the Bebe that threw him from the bridge. "You. Care to try that again?"
Bebe Number 3 charged him. It was over in a blink. Her body came away from her head when Ron brought a foot up in a roundhouse kick. Sparks flew as both parts of the robot fell to the roof. Ron was ready for the next one as Bebe Number 1 charged. A hole opened up from her sternum through and out her back as his fist penetrated her metallic torso. The red in her eyes faded, thus indicating that she was lifeless. Ron pulled his arm out and let the weight drop to the roof.
"I'm glad these are just machines," he thought. "I wouldn't wish this done to any human."
Keeping himself encased in his blue aura, Ron prepared for the last Bebe. He found her holding a still bound Yori in the air over the edge of the bridge. Yori looked at him but she show no signs of fear. No matter what he was about to do, she trusted that he would let nothing happen to her. He realized this when she gave the faintest of nods. Ron called out for Rufus. The mole rat scurried out from the shadows and back to Ron who held his pocket open. Ron then went to collect his backpack. Finally he stepped over to the edge of the Skybridge, the same side over which Yori was being held, and, without a word, leapt off.
The Bebe looked over to see what might have become of him. And by the time Drakken's cameras repositioned themselves to locate him, Ron had come up from the opposite side of the bridge behind the Bebe, knocking her from the bridge with Yori.
Ron hurried and leapt after them. As they all fell towards the ground, Ron caught up with them, grabbed the Bebe's wrist and pried her fingers open to release her hold of Yori. Ron grabbed onto Yori's ropes, kicked the Bebe away from them and increased the power of his aura to support both him and Yori. They slowed to a hover as the Bebe crashed to the ground.
In a broken tone, the Bebe's final words before termination were, "Since when can he do that?"
After touching down, Ron let his aura vanish before he untied Yori. "Are you alright?"
Yori wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. "I am thanks to you, Stoppable-san." He returned the gesture.
After letting her go, he pulled out his Kimmunicator, called Wade and was transferred to Drakken. "No more challenges, Drakken. Give me back my girlfriend."
Drakken, flustered, answered after a moment, "Forget it. I don't know what's happened to you, but you were never supposed to be this good. You have never been this good!"
Ron's grip on the Kimmunicator tightened. "Tell me where you are!"
"Stoppable-san." Ron looked at Yori. She leaned in towards his ear and whispered. "You have a very special bond with Kim. You can find her without radio contact. It is from inside you that you must reach out to her. Do that and you will find not only her but the way to her."
He considered her words. So much has happened to him since his fight with the synthodrones, all thanks to that vision and the awakening of his monkey powers. And this last feat proved he was capable of so much. Ron believed her and decided to try. He looked at Drakken again. "I'm done talking to you. I'll find her. And I'll find you."
"Is that so?" Drakken scoffed. "How?"
Ron ignored him and shut the Kimmunicator off. He then looked up at the cameras that had followed him during his decent. He had enough of being watched. Gathering his energy again, he restored the blue aura. He then raised his right arm and closed his fist. At the same time all the cameras crumbled and dropped to the ground. That would undoubtedly anger Drakken, but tough. And the world would just have to wait to see him when the mission was over.
He pulled Rufus from his pocket and handed the mole rat to Yori before sitting on the ground. Crossing his legs and closing his eyes, Ron took a breath and relaxed. He thought of Kim, their long-time friendship, their missions, and at last their coupling at the prom. He felt as though he was being lifted skyward, although physically he remained sitting. He passed over cities, bodies of water, and numerous landscapes. Once over the panhandle of a single landmass surrounded by water he descended, and then continued onward, rapidly drifting through a forest, into a cave opening, through and down a rocky passage into a grand cavern with an impressive-looking fortress. He continued forward, through doors, along hallways, and down an elevator shaft until he saw himself before several doors. Onward Ron was carried, passing through one of them where he discovered Kim Possible lying on a cot.
Ron knew she could not see him, but hoped she would hear him. "KP."
To her, his voice sounded so real she actually responded. "Ron?"
"Shh. Don't say anything that might alert Drakken, just listen. I'm here, in a way, but not really here. I want you to know that I know where you are now, and I'm coming for you. I'll be there soon. Trust me."
Ron broke his connection with her and felt himself return to Kuala Lumpur. He opened his eyes. After standing up, he looked at Yori and told her he found Kim. He then pulled the Kimmunicator back out and called Wade. "Wade, is it possible Drakken is able to track me?"
"I suppose. Why?"
"There's only one way he could be, and I want to lose it."
Wade understood that Ron meant the chip. "It's inside your right glove."
Ron removed his glove and threw it in a trashcan. He had another pair on the jet. Looking back to Wade, he said, "I'm going for Kim, now. I know where she is. I'll contact you again, soon." He ended his transmission before Wade could say more.
Taking Yori's hands in his he said, "Thanks, Yori. You're the best."
Yori bowed. "Until we meet again, Stoppable-san."
"Uh, uh." He grinned. "Call me Ron-san."
She, too, smiled and gave him one more hug before he and Rufus left.
Read and review. Thank you.