Jimmy and Betty:
Betty entered the chamber where Jimmy slept. He began to stir as she approached. "How did it go Jimmy, did you give her the sword?"
"Yes," he said with a grin, "She fell for it as you predicted my love."
"Good, my minions have informed me that she landed her lion and entered the pyramid during the battle. She's on the lower floor as we speak. That girl really is determined to rescue you." Betty said with a slightly jealous tone in her voice.
Jimmy stepped forward in his muscular reptilian form and embraced her from behind. "Don't worry my love. My hologram projector and teleporter worked perfectly. She doesn't have the slightest clue that the sword is a trap." Jimmy whispered in her ear.
Betty turned to look him in the eyes. There was sadness in her eyes that Jimmy wasn't expecting. "Why do you look sad?" He asked her.
"She scares me, Jimmy. She can destroy me. If this plan fails she could destroy everything we're working toward." Betty replied.
"Don't worry, Betty. I already implanted the code word in Carl's mind. When Cindy tries to use the power of the sword she will be ours." He leaned in and kissed her passionately.
Eustace, Libby, Sheen, and Carl:
The group of friends raced after Cindy as she entered the pyramid. They entered the stone doorway and entered a torch lit corridor. Cindy was already out of sight.
"Cindy! Wait up!" Carl shouted as he gasped for breath at the end of the first corridor; it forked in three ways.
"Cindy, Can you hear me?" Eustace shouted into his wrist communicator. There was no response as he attempted to reach her several more times. "She must have her watch turned off." Sheen said exasperated.
"Oh no! She can't do this alone. She could get really hurt. We have to help her." Carl said. "But which way did she go?"
"I don't know, Carl, but you're right; we have to find her." Libby said anxiously.
"It will be better if we split up. Sheen, you and Libby go right. Carl, you and I will head left. If you find her, contact us with your communicator and we'll do the same for you." Eustace said.
"But who will check the middle corridor?" Sheen asked.
"I will." The kids jumped in surprise. They turned sharply to see, Jet Fusion approaching from the direction they had just come from.
"Wow look, Carl, its Jet Fusion." Sheen said.
"Hello, Mr. Jet Fusion, Are you here to help us save Jimmy?" Carl asked.
"As a matter of fact I am. You kids know how to use your weapons right?" he said eyeing the laser guns the kids held in their hands.
"Yeah these things can blow up a city block if you set them to full power. Not that we intend to use them on that setting, Right, Sheen?" Libby said as she glared at Sheen.
"Of course not Libby," he said as all eyes turned on him. "What? Don't you guys trust me?" The cold stares continued for a few moments until Sheen turned the dial on his weapon to a much lower setting, as he grumbled inaudibly to himself.
Cindy:
Cindy was caught up in her obsession to reach Jimmy, so despite her better judgment she didn't wait for her friends. This was between her and Betty anyhow.
She came upon a large set of double doors. Jimmy had told her that this was where she would find him. She paused outside the door for a moment to check her equipment. She removed a small packet from her pocket. It was marked with the correct label this time to be sure. She took out a can of bottle of, Purple Flurp, and poured the contents of the packet into the bottle. She placed the sealed bottle back into a holster on her utility belt. "Just a little bit of added security if things get out of hand." She thought to herself. She regretted that she couldn't just swig the bottle down now and bash her way to Jimmy. The contents would only last for a half an hour and she didn't want to waste them until she was absolutely sure she would need them. "Besides," she thought to herself "I have the sword of power."
She stepped into the chamber with her sword already drawn and approached a cloaked figure in the center of room. The room had large columns that supported the stone ceiling. There were many torches along the walls, but there were still many shadows that could be hiding enemies. She held the sword with two hands in front of her in a defensive stance and spoke to the figure, "Who are you and where is my friend Jimmy?" She demanded.
The shadowy cloaked figure removed the hood. It was here that she first laid eyes on the being that she had been seeking. Betty grinned back at her with a beautiful smile. "Hello, Cindy, long time, no see."
"What have you done with Jimmy?" Cindy demanded again.
Betty grinned as she looked over the sword that Cindy was holding. "Oh he's here alright. You can reach him by using the elevating platform I'm standing on. All you have to do is get by me."
Betty said sweetly as she pulled a Kris style blade from a scabbard under the cloak. The sword had a serpent skull shaped hand guard. "That's a very nice sword you're holding, Cindy, but can you use it?"
"Actually I spent the last several months working on sword use in my martial arts routine." Cindy said fiercely. "Surrender and I'll spare your life long enough to put you back where you belong as a figment of my imagination!"
"Unlikely, Cindy, I have every skill you have and more. The only one that is going anywhere is you." Betty retorted.
Cindy grew tired of the goading, and took the offensive, and lunged forward. The chamber echoed with the beautiful clang of sword blades.
The fight went on for several minutes as sparks flew from the sheer impact of blade on blade. The enchanted blades resisted chipping and breakage that normal swords would suffer. Cindy and Betty alternated who was on the offensive and who was on the defensive, as they danced around each other parrying blades.
Cindy thought she saw and opening in Betty's defense, stepping in close, she swung over head toward Betty's soft neck, but Betty raised her blade and blocked in the nick of time. The swords stuck together with a flash of sparks. The fight for dominance continued, as the two warriors struggled to push their blade into the other.
Betty felt the fatigue in her arms as she struggled to keep her sword blade from being pushed into her. She had wanted to win this fairly, but she desperate times called for desperate measures. She concentrated and purple energy erupted out of eyes hitting Cindy in the abdomen. The force sent Cindy hurtling head over heels several feet across the room. She landed in flat on her back, heaving for air. Her diaphragm shuttered, as if she had been hit in the stomach by, Rocky Balboa.
Betty laughed as she walked in a silky manner toward her fallen foe. Cindy curled up in the fetal position clutching her stomach. Her vision grew blotchy, as her brain desperately screamed for air. She could see the shadowy figure approaching her.
Betty stood next to Cindy and looked down at her. Some of Cindy's blonde hair had come loose from her hair tie. Betty reached down and took a handful of the hair and yanked hard, pulling Cindy's head backward. Cindy grunted from the pain forgetting about the pain in her stomach for a moment. Betty let her hair go once she was flat on her back, but quickly followed through with a punch right in Cindy's solar plexus, which caused the girl to curl up in the fetal position again.
"Don't worry, Cindy, I'm not going to kill you yet. I need you alive, at least for now." Betty said as she stood over Cindy. "So you can be properly sacrificed." Betty thought to herself.
Cindy struck from her fetal position, kicking Betty's legs out from under her. Betty hit the ground with a thud leaving her slightly dazed.
Cindy staggered to her feet still hunched over and clutching her sore stomach. "I wanted to do this without super powers, Betty, but you leave me no choice." She said hoarsely. Her mind raced over what Carl had told her. She felt stupid having to say these particular words. She couldn't allow herself to feel awkward though. She held aloft the sword and shouted "Jimmy Neutron is a smarter, nicer, all around better person than I am."
"WHAT! Those aren't the words you were supposed to say!" shouted Betty as lightning struck Cindy energizing her with power.
The light was blinding and Betty had to turn and shield her eyes. When the light faded away she discovered her enemy adorned a different outfit. She was no longer in her pink uniform, but instead of being imprisoned, she was wearing Jimmy's dream armor.
"Are you disappointed, Betty? After discussing the matter with Carl I had induced that the sword was a trick. Your Jimmy imposter was good to be sure, but no one knows that kid better than I do, and that wasn't him. The first clue was Jimmy's knowledge about Astral Projection. Jimmy doesn't believe in the supernatural and always concludes that there is a rational scientific explanation. He wouldn't have wasted his time researching such things."
"The kid is an insufferable know-it-all. He very well could have researched it." Betty said defiantly.
"True enough, but Carl is so forgetful about everything, yet somehow he knew exactly what to say. That was very suspicious, as if he had been programmed with the information" Cindy added.
"The real Jimmy could have done that himself, Cindy," Betty replied.
"You're right but Jimmy and I had setup password phrases to say to each other just in case something like this happened, and your fake clearly wasn't caught up on current events." Cindy said with a smirk.
"You have got to be kidding me?" Betty grumbled to herself.
"Enough talk! Cindy said, as her rocket boots activated with a burst of fire. Cindy hovered a foot off the ground.
Betty concentrated a moment, and her skin turned reptilian and she doubled in size. She grinned exposing her long fangs that dripped with poison. She lunged forward at Cindy. She caught Cindy by the shoulders and struck with her fangs. Betty shrieked in rage as the fangs deflected off the armor. Cindy activated one of the suit's defenses. Betty screamed and writhed in pain as electricity arched all about.
Cindy's reinforced fist was aided by the muscle amplifiers in the suit, as Cindy swung full force into Betty's face casting her across the room. The room shuddered, as Betty collided with the wall breaking several breaks. Betty retaliated with another energy blast from her serpent eyes. Cindy saw this one coming in time and said, "Sword to shield!" She felt the shield shutter in her hands, as the energy struck. She braced herself against the percussive force, as her feet slid along the ground.
To be continued….