A/N: Cindy knows that they are heading to face the Betty look alike again and if that thing escaped there is no telling what else may have escaped. There are untold dangerous creations in a mind so creative and they are only limited by her imagination...
Carl led the gang through the school yard and stopped in front of the merry go round. He grabbed on to the railing and tentatively climbed up onto it. He staggered awkwardly as he tried to maintain his balance. "Jimmy hid the number key thingy here." He twisted the cap on top of the post on the merry go round counter clockwise and removed it revealing the numerical key pad underneath. "Now if I can only remember what numbers to press." Carl said frowning.
"Carl!" They all shouted in unison. Carl cringed and apologized for his forgetfulness.
"Come on Carl; take your time. You'll remember; you've got to." Cindy said encouragingly.
"Yeah Carl, No pressure; It's only Jimmy's life on the line!" Sheen shouted.
"Sheen!" Libby elbowed him in the side to emphasize her words. "Leave Carl alone and let him think." He opened his mouth to say something else but her glare silenced him.
"I'm trying guys I really am. But I can't remember what they are. Jimmy said if there was an emergency to tell Cindy, "Happy Birthday", but I don't see how that would help us." Carl stared at the ground and scratched his head.
"Happy Birthday? Cindy's birthday isn't until June 5th." Libby said.
"No lib don't you get it? The code is my birthday. Carl type in 6,5,1,9,9,8." Cindy said the excitement showing in her tone.
Carl typed away quickly but stopped short. "Cindy I don't think that's it. It only allows for four numbers."
"Then try typing in 6,5,9,9 Carl." She said impatiently.
Carl plugged in the new series of digits and they heard an audible chime before the led read out on the panel flashed "Code Accepted".
"It worked guys. Alright follow me." He slipped off the end of the merry go round and stumbled forward toward the basketball court. They discovered that the pavement had slid back revealing a stair well that went underground. The stair well was lit by circular shaped lamps which was a relief to Cindy considering the darkness she had been trapped in was still an unpleasant and recent memory that would haunt her for the next few weeks for sure.
The stairs went deep underground, and ended at a giant steel door with a giant Neutron symbol carved into it. They were surprised to see another key pad. Carl typed in Cindy's birthday again but the read out said access denied followed by a negative sounding beep.
"Hmm Jimmy added this since the last time I was here guys and if Cindy's birthday didn't work…" Carl trailed off feeling defeated. They all looked solemn except for Cindy. She was determined not to fail Jimmy. They had to figure out what the code was. She began typing every combination of four digits she could think of that would mean anything to Jimmy. But none of them seemed to work. She swore under breath as she glanced at her watch and saw that she had been at this for the last two hours. The sweat beaded on her forehead and her fingers were sore from pushing the hard keys so many times. She also struggled to control how claustrophobic she felt in the confines of the tunnel and she shuddered for a moment when she imagined the lights going out around here.
She stared at the panel hoping of somehow it would help her divulge the secret of the code. Her eyes raced back and forth searching every piece of the walls, doors, and panel; hoping to find something she over looked. She kept looking back to a scratch on the control panel in the right hand corner. The scratch seemed so out of place on an other wise flawless door. She scratched at it and her mind drifted back to the day she carved "J + C forever" it was the day she had asked Jimmy to stay on the island with her. The day Jimmy finally got an idea how she really felt about him despite how violently she had tried to keep the secret safe in the past.
How could I have forgotten to try that particular date? I guess it's because that whole block of time blurred together in my mind. I was just so excited being so close to him. I never really paid attention to the dates I suppose. I really only remember the specific date because it was also the first day of what was going to be two months of grounding. That is it would have been if Jimmy hadn't used his Forget o' blaster on them and erased our being gone from all of our parents minds. Damn I love that kid. Its just so hard to think straight around him. I should beat him up for it. He really does deserve it; getting me all worked up the way he does. Getting himself kidnapped and always risking our lives….but he's so cute and he does always go out of his way to make sure I'm safe…..
"Cindy? Cindy? You there girl? The door is open; we can go in." Libby was snapping her fingers in front of Cindy's face until her green eyes focused.
"Huh! What happened?" Cindy asked realizing she had gotten lost in her thoughts again. She felt her face flush with embarrassment at allowing herself to be distracted again. Especially considering that she was wasting time that should be being spent rescuing the very person she was day dreaming about. "I'm fine. I think it must have been a defense mechanism of the lab, a gas, yeah that's it. Thanks for snapping me out of it." She lied quickly as she typed in the new date. She sighed as she heard the audible beep and the words Access Granted flashed across the screen as she hurried forward through the open doorway. He is so romantic….
They entered a room full of monitors. They displayed images being broadcast from one of a variety of satellites that Jimmy had hacked into and video cameras he had set up. As they entered the room they must have set off a motion sensor because Jimmy's voice suddenly resonated throughout the chamber. "Hey guys. If I'm correct and I'm correct 89.23% of the time. Then there is an emergency and I'm speaking to Carl, Libby, Sheen, and Cindy. If that is the case than that means something has happened to me. Anyhow I designed the computer system within the confines of this lab with artificial intelligence. It has been programmed with complex algorithms which make it proficient with solving complex problems. In other words it should be able to help you to handle pretty much anything that you're up against. Well at least I hope it can. Oh if by chance I am dead tell my parents I love them and someone please feed Goddard. " The message must have ended because the room fell silent.
"Hum so what in Ultralord do we do now? Sheen asked.
A hologram of Jimmy appeared in the center of the room and answered "It depends what the problem is Sheen."
"Whoa is that you Jimmy?" Sheen asked in surprise.
"No but I am a clever proximity of the real Jimmy. I have his amazing intellect, and as you can see due to my holographic upgrade, I now have his devilish good looks as well." The hologram winked as he gave the group of them a grin.
Cindy rolled her eyes and sighed with disgust. "Oh lord, even his hologram is full of itself. Alright Neutron or whatever you are, listen up, the real Jimmy has been kidnapped and is being held hostage on an island in the south pacific. The lab in Jimmy's yard has been destroyed, we have to get out to the island and we have no means of getting there, and don't even know what we're going to face if we make it there."
"I see. Ok well let's start with finding out what you're up against. Watch that monitor." They turned to watch the monitor the hologram had indicated. The screen flashed in and out for a moment and the island appeared on the screen. The camera zoomed in slowly and Cindy was astonished at how different the island looked.
Pyramids had been erected at six points around the island. The main one in the center of the island was the largest and the only one that was guarded by hundreds of soldiers armed with spears and shields. Demonic looking creatures flew through the air circling about, while giant forty foot snakes slithered around the base of the stairs that led up to the top of the pyramid.
"It's a safe bet that's the location Jimmy is being held." Cindy said. " I say we go anyhow."
"Agreed; Jimmy would do it for us." Said Carl and Sheen.
"Guys, how are we going to handle an army like that?" Libby asked nervously.
"Actually Libby I designed something that should help. The tools you will need are within the next chamber." As he spoke a panel in the wall slid upward.
They looked around the room and saw that there were five pods sitting on rail tracks that went into separate tunnels. Each pod was numbered.
The hologram appeared in the room and said "You have to use the uniforms you will find in the nearby lockers. They are made out of a patented Neutron fabric that will automatically adjust to fit the wearer. The uniform has a fiber optic cables woven into it that when used in tandem with the matching helmet allow the user to connect in with his respective mech." He paused for affect.
Sheen's eyes went wide "Did he say mech?"
"Yes I did Sheen. I have a mech for each of you. They are equipped with the most advanced fire power that I was able to adapt using a combination of Gorlokian and Earth based technology."
"This is great! With these mechs we will rescue you Jimmy. I swear on the honor of Ultralord to not fail you!" Sheen shouted at the ceiling.
The hologram shook its head with a smile and continued the tutorial. "The pods will transport you to your respective mechs and can be activated using the keys locked within this panel." A separate panel slid open but the gang was horrified to discover a hole in the wall and an empty display case that once held the keys. "
"Where are they?" Cindy screamed on the verge of hysteria.
Sheen bent over and picked something off the ground. "Hey what is this thing?"
The hologram responded "It's a primer for a small explosive used for entering facilities through armored doors. Whoever did this must have been well equipped and well trained. They deactivated the security system for this room without alerting the main frame of the breach of security. Someone paid handsomely for this job. I can think of only one person who has the not only the means but the motive as well. Someone that is always trying to steal my inventions and will stop at almost nothing to kill me; Eustace Stryche"
To be continued…..