Chapter 12

Adrena Lynn faced Electronique with Team Go, head bowed and trying her best not to tremble. She was half-way regretting returning to base empty-handed, but this was the path she had chosen. Now she just had to weather the storm and find her way back into Electronique's good graces.

Electronique was a picture of barely suppressed ire. "So, let me see if I have understood correctly: you compromised your mission on the very first day in an attempt to capture Shego, which you also failed to accomplish."

"Yeah, that's about the size of it."

Adrena felt distinctly annoyed at Hego responding for them. The big oaf might have been the leader when Team Go were a team of heroes, but she was in charge now.

"We did locate Shego," Adrena said, but didn't dare point out that it was something Electronique hadn't managed on her own. "And we confirmed she and Kim Possible are definitely working together."

"That is something, I suppose." Electronique still didn't look any more pleased with them. "Tell me, what new things did you learn about Kim Possible, apart from her cooperation with Shego?"

"Uhh... we didn't really have that much time to observe her..."

"No, you did not."

"We got an opportunity to grab Shego, and we took it!"

"Indeed. And had you succeeded, I'd be much more inclined to be forgiving. Tell me, between the five of you, how did you fail to capture one woman?"

"She was much more difficult to handle than I thought, and these brutes weren't very useful. But we had her cornered. If Kim Possible hadn't barged in right then, we would have had her."

"Did I not say it was your responsibility to make them more efficient? And would it be fair to say you failed because you charged in without taking the time to gather relevant intelligence and form a viable plan?"

"Uh..."

"Which is precisely what I wanted you to practice with Kim Possible. I had rather hoped you'd understand that the same principle applies to Shego, too."

Electronique's demeanor was growing calmer, but Adrena wasn't reassured. Team Go was tense as well, sensing a calm before a storm. Adrena decided it was time for damage control.

"I'm sorry. I messed up. But you told me you didn't expect perfection from the start."

"So I did." Electronique's voice was low and her face was neutral. It sent chills down Adrena's back. "I did, however, expect you to not keep repeating the same mistake. It seems I need to take a more hands-on approach to your education."

Electronique raised her hands to illustrate her point. Her suit began a high-pitched whine as the charge built up. "You four! Get out of my sight and stay gone." She emphasized the order by unleashing her power on the brothers. The four men scrambled away, dodging electric discharges.

Adrena stood her ground. She was afraid that Electronique might turn her ire on her, but she enjoyed the sight of Team Go fleeing from Electronique too much to turn away. She was the very picture of a dangerous, dominant villainess she hoped one day to be. Adrena wanted to be as powerful as her, to make her enemies scurry to escape her wrath. She found it hard to picture how Team Go had ever managed to defeat her. The former heroes made it out of sight and Electronique ceased her awe-inspiring demonstration of power.

"Follow me." Electronique turned and walked away. Adrena followed her without delay, not even thinking of making use of her back being turned.

Electronique led the way to one of the rooms at the end of the building that Adrena thought had once been an equipment room. From the paraphernalia on the tables lining the walls it was obvious she had adopted the room as her workshop. It wasn't where Adrena had expected to be taken. She had half-imagined a dungeon. She shivered as she took another look at the tools on display. She wasn't sure what Elecronique's approach to punishment was, but electric shocks definitely seemed to be on the table.

"Close the door after you."

Adrena did as instructed, then turned to face Electronique. "I'm sorry I failed your test. Please, give me another chance to prove myself. I'll do anything." She looked at Electronique with wide, pleading eyes and leaned slightly forwards while pulling her shoulders back, emphasizing her chest, just a little. "Anything."

"You probably think that I'm angry at you. You are wrong. I am not angry at you, I'm merely disappointed." Electronique seated herself in the only chair in the room, a green, comfortable recliner that looked out of place in its surroundings. "If anything, I'm mad at myself. I should have known better than to get my hopes up about you."

Adrena felt a strange pang at her words that she didn't understand at all. Electronique was merely a means to an end; her approval shouldn't matter to her this much.

"Do you see that tray on the table? Bring it to me."

Adrena stepped in the indicated direction. She was surprised by her own obedience. Of course, she had placed herself in Electronique's power by coming back here like a loyal minion, and if Electronique wanted her to play the servant she didn't have much choice. Her power couldn't get past Electronique's shield, and she really didn't want to get shocked again.

On the table lay a cheap plastic tray with two short metal cylinders on it. They were complicated affairs with wires crossing their surface, and Adrena assumed they were Electronique's handiwork. She carefully picked the tray up, wary of the objects sliding off.

Adrena walked up to the chair and looked down at Electronique's face. She was about to hand the tray over when the look on Electronique's face made her reconsider. She carefully knelt in front of the seated villain and held up the tray to her. She briefly wondered why she voluntarily humiliated herself by acting so submissively, but reassured herself that for the moment it was in her interest to court lenience by any means available.

"Perhaps I mistook the position you were suited for, my dear. You look very natural right there."

Adrena felt shame at Electronique acknowledging her subservient attitude, but she also felt a tiny bit of hope at her using one of her pet names for the first time since her return. Perhaps her display of loyalty had earned her forgiveness. Villains did love their henchmen, after all. It was not what Adrena wanted to be, but she reflected that even Shego worked as a sidekick to a more prominent villain. It was a step down from junior partner, but she could live with that arrangement for a while.

"Your performance so far has been far from satisfactory, darling, but your obedience is very becoming. I have a gift for you."

Electronique picked up the metal cylinders. She balanced one on the armrest while manipulating the other in her hands. There was a small click, and the cylinder opened along hinges that had been hidden beneath the wires. Right now the object looked very much like a heavy cuff. Adrena swallowed.

"Put down the tray and hold out one arm, would you, dear."

Adrena did as instructed and raised her left arm, shaking a little. Her mouth was dry and her heart was beating fast. As she'd expected, Electronique took her arm and slid the cuff on her wrist. Her touch was firm, but gentle. She snapped the cuff shut with a very final-sounding click. She picked up the other cuff, and Adrena held out her right arm without being prompted. Electronique favored her with a little smile as she placed the other cuff on her.

"Now, my dear, activate your Glow."

Adrena hesitated for a moment, searching Electronique's face, then did as instructed. She called on that strange, otherworldly power she had hoped would give her the edge she needed over Kim Possible, and the orange spheres formed around her hands. She could feel the slight reassuring pressure on her skin and the strange certainty that these spheres, and everyone they touched, would loyally follow her wishes.

She looked up at Electronique. She was fairly certain that her shield required a short charge-up time. From this distance, she might be able to strike before Electronique could react. In her desire to humble her the woman had given her the perfect opportunity to turn the tables. She just needed to will her Glow forwards, and then it would be Electronique that was kneeling, not her.

There was a slight, arrogant smile on Electronique's lips. Adrena looked down. She couldn't risk it. The cautious villain would never leave herself open like that. This was another test, and the price for failure would no doubt be painful. Electronique was a much more experienced villain than her, and it was better to serve her than fail on her own. She held out her hands surrounded by her power, displaying the Glow like an offering.

"Brace yourself, dear."

Before Adrena could fully comprehend the words, she experienced a sudden discomfort. It was unlike any feeling she'd had before, but it was little alike to trying to breath with body immersed in water. There was a sense of mounting pressure, of suffocation. She gasped for breath and started hyperventilating. Inexplicable sense of being crushed continued to increase until tears started to flow from her eyes. She still couldn't pinpoint the cause, and she started to panic.

Suddenly the sensation disappeared with a sharp shock of what might have been pain. She blinked tears from her eyes and tried to understand what had happened. She was sprawled on the floor and her heart was hammering a mile a minute. As she got her breathing back under control she realized the sensation had vanished without a trace. She was fine. She got back up on her knees.

"Oh, you poor darling. I didn't expect it to be quite that unpleasant."

Adrena could feel a hand stroking her head. She looked up at Electronique, who nodded down at her wrists. She followed the direction and looked down. On both cuffs shone a red LED light she hadn't noticed before. Her Glow was off, of course.

"Miniature version of my shield, projected around your hands. It seems to work as intended. Try to activate your Glow again."

"No." Adrena didn't ever want to experience that again.

"I insist." Electronique cupped her chin and lifted her head up until she was looking the villain in the eyes. "Just for a second, dear."

Adrena tried it. Instantly the discomfort returned, and she abandoned the effort, the sensation soon fading. Having had a moment to recover, the implication of the cuffs dawned on her.

"I totally could have taken you from this distance."

"Perhaps you could have." There was a teasing smirk. "And perhaps you couldn't. I just found it tiresome to always have to be on guard when you're around. Always wearing this shield gets old, you know. With you properly accessorized, I can occasionally let my hair down around you."

Adrena looked up at her hair, which still stuck straight up.

"A figure of speech, darling. Don't worry, I'll let you off the leash when time comes to face our foes. Incidentally, do not try to remove the cuffs. They hold quite a lot of charge, and I doubt you'd survive the experience of grounding them."

Adrena swallowed. "I'll keep that in mind."

Electronique again petted Adrena's head and stroked her hair. It was a little demeaning, but also unexpectedly pleasant after the painful experience and the stress she'd been under.

"Perhaps I was too harsh on you. You didn't entirely fail my test, after all."

Adrena wanted to ask what she meant, but didn't want to risk making her situation worse. She looked up at Electronique and waited for her to elaborate.

"Yes, you failed in the overt mission, but you did manage to successfully guide your team there and back again. Given their... unruliness, and the fact you lack the means to effectively discipline them, that is not an insignificant achievement."

"Thank you." Adrena decided Electronique didn't need to know any embarrassing details.

"And, of course, I wanted to test your loyalty. I think you are doing an admirable job of demonstrating it right now."

Electronique's hand still hadn't left her head, and it now traced down her jaw with a caressing touch.

"Perhaps we should find out what other praiseworthy qualities you might possess, my darling Adrena."

There was a hungry, possessive look on Electronique's face that made Adrena shiver, but not in a bad way.