I do not own the Disney characters named herein, and am only using them for a nonprofit tale meant to entertain only.
Kim Possible: Rogue
By LJ58
11
Still Three Years Ago:
"Honored Elder, I am grateful you chose to meet with this unworthy one," Shego bowed to the slender old man with a thin, white goatee that was the only hair on his otherwise hairless head, and face.
"Considering your reputation, Shego," the old man nodded blandly, "I would be hard-pressed to ignore your request."
"I do not mean to trouble you. I am not seeking anything, but…..a favor."
"Truly? And what could the Silver Fang do for one such as you," a younger man at the Triad leader's side demanded.
"Be still, Hao," the old man growled. "Youngsters," he said, smilingly grimly as he looked back to Shego.
"That is what I am to discuss," Shego told him. "A….close friend of mine is attending school here in your lovely land."
"Ah. Kim Possible," the man remarked, proving he really was in touch with current events.
"Just so," she nodded back. "Regrettably, your younger son has taken issue with her academic accomplishments."
"Truly? I was given to understand it was a more….personal challenge?"
"No. Mere spite over being overshadowed by a more competent mind," Shego state plainly, yet bluntly. "He now seeks to erase that slight he feels by erasing her. Such a move would….displease me. Greatly," she added pointedly.
"Ah, the heart of your favor?"
"Indeed," she said quietly. "I do not hold any ill will to you, or your family, Master Sheng Li. However, does your son continue to….annoy my friend, I will take it personally. And I will intervene."
"We have already heard you intervened….."
"Hao," the old man growled again. "Leave us. You insult our guest."
The young man scowled darkly, but bowed, and turned to leave the room.
"He is just traditional enough to be arrogant, yet far too Western to heed wisdom, and patience. At least, as yet," the older man smiled.
"We must all find our all own road," Shego commented.
"Well said. Well said. I shall summon my son home this very afternoon. I shall speak to him personally. Assure Miss Possible that I have no ill will toward her. I hope that will continue to be true for her."
"I assure you, all she seeks is an education. She is not here for any other reason."
"Very good. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. You may consider your favor granted."
"And do you ever require my aid, within reason, you shall have my word I shall show you my utmost gratitude."
The man chortled as he rose, and gestured for her to follow him from the room in what was essentially a palatial throne room.
Shego rose with fluid grace, and followed at his side. A place few women in his world would ever dare take.
"Having you in my debt is a heady experience, Shego. I assure you, I will not treat that favor lightly. Again, I think you for being so….circumspect in this matter. I assure you, I will soon have it set to rights."
"Then the honor is mine. Thank you for your time, sir, and I can assure you, Kimberly will be equally appreciative if she can enjoy this fine country without fearing for her life every time she chooses to take a walk."
"Of course. Of course. I shall ensure my subordinates all know she is a favored guest as of now. She will enjoy the rest of her time here without fear, or worry. You have my personal word of honor."
"That is more than enough," Shego now bowed low to him as a servant opened the door for her. "Until another day, Master Sheng Li."
"You cower to that western creature," his son appeared the very moment the door closed. "How could you…..?"
"You, son, are a fool. That creature could raze our palace without trying. Having one such as her as ally not only improves our standing, but ensures that any that might trifle with us will now hesitate, knowing I could well call her in to strike at them."
"She has been neutered by that American heroine. All know this."
"Then all know nothing. As is usual. Learn to look with your inner eyes, son, and you will find the wisdom to lead our Family into the next generation. As you are now, I fret for our legacy."
Hao scowled at him, but did respect him enough to ponder his father's words.
"Yet Ji has said this American girl has lost her fire. She is…powerless."
"Which one. Shego? Or Kimberly Possible?"
"Possible," Hao sneered. "She has not even stood up to him even once…."
"Yet she has held off over five ambushes, even when she is so obviously out-of-shape, and out of practice. Imagine were she inspired to reinvigorate herself. Do you honestly think you, or Ji could face her?"
"You believe that she will be….renewed?"
"Even now, I happen to know that Shego's recent visit has inspired our young guest to start training again. Every afternoon, and every weekend since that last attack, Kimberly now trains with Shego, and is fast improving her once inestimable skills. I wager, did your brother foolishly attack her now, he would yet again only be spending more of our allies in vain."
Hao considered that.
He had once seen footage of Possible taking on pirates outside Shanghai that threatened to unleash toxic weapons on the city were they not paid off. She had made short work of almost fifty hardened pirates with no weapons, and that strange ally of hers that fought in a most unconventional fashion. That had not been the woman he had seen of late, though. Still, if she were polishing her skills again, he had to admit it wouldn't be long before she might just be looking for the source of her troubles.
Which could bring them all more trouble than they wanted with the delicate ongoing diplomatic negotiations in some of his father's more legitimate business interests.
"I take your point, father," he nodded. "How should we proceed?"
"First, bring your foolish sibling home. Then ensure that our local contacts know that Kimberly is not to be touched. Not to be harmed. Not even harassed. As of now, she is our guest. Our personal guest."
"Not Shego," he frowned.
"I would insult her by even offering such protection," the old man laughed. "And anyone attacking that one, my son, is a greater fool than any I've ever known."
Hao didn't argue.
KP
"You actually got the Triad to listen to you," Kim stared at her as she sat with an open Physics book in front of her.
Shego grimaced at the seemingly arcane lore in those open pages, and shrugged.
"Like you say, no big. I just laid out things so we both knew what was what. Sheng Li is an old-fashioned kind of guy, and if you treat him with respect, he is more than willing to be reasonable."
"And," Kim asked knowingly.
"I kind of suggested I'd do unspeakable things to his kid if you got so much as a hangnail from now on," Shego grinned.
Kim laughed, and closed her text.
"That's naughty."
"Hey, don't argue with results," she shot back smugly.
"I'm not. It'd be kind of nice not to have to worry about him for a change. It's been kind of annoying. I was afraid I was going to have transfer, or something."
"You're good now. I squared everything with the old man. Now, don't forget, I have an appointment with the local dojo for us tonight. Time to do some serious sparring, for a change, and see if you've finally got that rust knocked off."
Kim smiled.
"I'll never thank you enough for all you've been doing," Kim told her, and stood up to hug her.
She wasn't sure where her own feelings were going, but lately, she was looking at Shego in ways that astonished even her. She was also questioning her own orientation as she reevaluated her near-legendary failures at dating.
Perhaps, she had begun to wonder, the reason she couldn't find the right man, was because she didn't want him. Maybe, she now reasoned, she was wanting the right woman.
That night, when Shego declared her rust officially polished, the green-skinned woman shocked her by pulling out a very simple, but beautiful gold, engagement ring.
Kim couldn't stop crying as she let her slide it on her hand.
KP
Today:
"You're telling me that Shego actually went alone to confront one of the most powerful Triads in China," Will exclaimed.
"I knew about that meeting," Dr. Director admitted. "But never why."
"Then you will understand that not long after their very quiet wedding, and Kim's graduation, they intended to meet in Middleton. Miss Possible wished to break the news to her friends and family with Shego at her side. She likely hoped her completed education on such an accelerated scale would ameliorate any ire they might feel toward her choice of partner."
"Knowing the Possibles, they wouldn't have cared either way, so long as Kimberly was happy," Dr. Director commented as Will didn't say a word.
"Indeed," Senor Senior nodded. "But I assure you, both women were genuinely in love, and genuinely happy with each other. Which is why Shego took it very poorly when Kim boarded that aircraft, and seemingly vanished."
"We never could get a lead…."
"My people did," Senor Senior told her. "It took me all of three weeks, but we quickly learned Miss Possible was drugged by agents the military group formerly associated with Cadmus had placed on board. They then hid her body until the flight reached London, where waiting agents smuggled her body to a military aircraft that flew her on to Lilac Valley."
"And…."
"And even my people couldn't get inside that place at the time," the old man sighed. "We know she went in, though. Just as we know she never came out. Yet everyone we did later question intimated that Kimberly vanished while in there."
"So she might still be held…."
"You mistake me, Elizabeth," the old man said gravely, and rose to his feet. "Follow me, if you will."
Dr. Director rose to her feet, and Will rose with her.
So did Bonnie, and Junior, who followed them to the back of the manor, down a flight of steps that led to a basement. Then took a hidden lift to an underground lab deep in the island. Then another set of steps took them even lower.
"There are reasons we're so deep. It's a panic room, of sorts. Only it's not for us. It's for this," he said, and gestured at a glass chamber twelve by twelve in the middle of the lower chamber that housed a single small table.
On the table was a small, dark box that only occasionally blinked a single bright, but steady light.
"The Matrix," Betty rasped, staring at the device. "That thing should be….."
"No. For several reasons," Bonnie cut her off, knowing what she was saying.
"Let me finish, my dear," Senor Senior told her. "You see, once we learned from certain personnel that Kimberly did indeed end up in Lilac Valley, we soon learned why. Her new background in bio-tech, along with her exposure to cybertronic, and alien tech in the past, had certain elements believing that she could yet harness the device for them as a weapon."
"Just as I feared," Betty grimaced, not mentioning Wade.
"We don't know the details, but we know that they somehow got Kimberly to cooperate. Only after her initial research…..something happened. What, we don't know. When I said Kimberly vanished, Elizabeth, I mean that literally. She just vanished. And whatever happened is tied to the sudden rise in military schemes that recently even tried to take over my own legitimate businesses, just as they took over Henchcho, and many other major, corporate empires across the globe."
"Wait, you're saying….?"
"Haven't you noticed?"
Betty eyed Bonnie now.
"Lately, the Pentagon has used shadow organizations to buy up every major manufacturer, or business in the world. They already own over sixty percent of all major corporations," she told the Global Justice agent. "Why, we don't know. Yet. But they're obviously still buying up the rest."
"And when I wouldn't sell," Senor Senior went on, "The 'accidents' started."
"What are the odds a lot of the other CEOs faced similar accidents," Will mused grimly.
"That, as they say, would be a sucker's betting," Junior declared.
"Indeed, my son. Indeed. But things are accelerating alarmingly if they are already turning from mere businesses to acquiring, or negating whole agencies."
"Anyone," Will remarked sagely, "That might yet resist them."
"Suddenly, the sanction on Shego makes more sense," Betty agreed. "She's likely the one woman in the world that could successfully hold them off, whatever they tried."
"Indeed. And those attacks and raids? She had been acquiring a lot of the prototypes, and tech that the military have been evidencing of late," he said, walking over a large vault he pulled open to reveal an alarming array of high-tech weaponry. "It might interest you to know, Elizabeth, that my own people confirm that some of these weapons are…..utterly alien to our world."
Dr. Director stared at the huge vault filled with tech, a nearby crate filled with the new rail guns, and looked back at him.
"What the hell is going on," she asked bluntly.
KP
"So you joined the Seniors to undermine these guys, and try to find out what was really going on?"
"Yes. Only everything we find only leads to more questions," Shego complained. "And the only guys left that might know the whole picture are harder to reach that the Pope."
"He's not so hard to…."
"You know what I mean," Shego growled, slamming a palm on the table.
"I get it. I get it. So, if you have the Matrix, couldn't you use it to…..somehow bring KP back from...wherever?"
"Know alien physics, do you?"
Ron grimaced.
"Because I don't. And I don't trust anyone else with that doohickey."
"Wade…."
"Wants it gone above all else. Remember? So, sure, hand it over to a kid who wanted it destroyed from the start without delay."
"He wouldn't….."
"Maybe. But how do you get inside GJ, which, by the way, was full of spies that didn't belong to the harpy, to ask if he might wait long enough to bring back one woman when the entire planet might be in danger? You tell me, Stoppable. What would he have done?"
"I…don't know."
"And I'm not risking my only lead to my Kimmie when he already proved he was ready to destroy that thing from the start."
Ron scrubbed his face with one hand as he stood up again, and looked around the otherwise blank room.
"We're in the middle of a plot we don't even understand. I certainly don't understand it. So, you tell me, what now?"
"I figured it out after I met you, and learned about Viper's real background," she told him.
Ron eyed her.
"And?"
"First, we spring Drew."
"Drakken?"
"Drew," she stressed. "He really did retire. Only he's likely the only one that knows what is really going on that will even talk to us."
"Except he's comatose," Ron reminded her.
"Exactly, but it occurs to me that if your rogue ninja was the guy that did something to him, like that general, then your people might know a way to reverse it," she pointed out.
"It's…possible," he nodded after a moment. "No pun intended," he added, seeing the look on her face. "But, why not just go after the other generals?"
"They knew I was after Jack. Guess who's dead now? Then when I started tracking Ol' Gene….."
"He suddenly had a stroke," Ron nodded. "I get it."
"Yeah, I realized whoever I targeted likely had ways to neutralize the others, or even themselves, to keep them from saying anything."
"Especially if we're only seeing dupes, and the real boss is still hidden behind the scenes."
"Yeah, I was starting to think that way myself," Shego told him. "So, can I count on you guys?"
Ron nodded.
"We can probably get into the clinic. We can probably even get him out. But where….?"
"Isn't it obvious? We take him to Senor Senior's island. It's the only safe place on the planet just now."
Ron stood thoughtfully for a moment, and then nodded.
"You'd better blaze. I'll regroup with my people, and if anyone is watching us, they'll think we gave up for the moment when we part. Because you can bet they likely have us all under surveillance."
"I wouldn't even argue the point," Shego nodded. "Frankly, the only reason I'm still alive is because I am who I am. If you're getting involved, watch you back. And trust no one," Shego told him. "Anyone could be an enemy, Stoppable. Anyone."
"I know. They tried replacing my dad a few days ago."
"That's not even the worst of it," she told them. "I tried reaching my brothers at the start, hoping they'd help."
"They turned you down?"
"They weren't there. All four of them were missing. I haven't found a trace of them yet."
Ron frowned.
"Funny, I haven't seen much activity from any of the other big Capes, either. It's like….."
"Someone is removing anyone that could stand up against whoever, or whatever is coming," Shego nodded. "Or that's my take."
"Something tells me you may be onto something," Ron grimaced. "Okay, I'll slip out, grab my people, and go. I'll meet you on the island once we have….Drew. And hopefully we can figure something out."
"Watch your back, Ronald," Shego rose, addressing him earnestly. "I've had a few other allies along the way."
"They vanished, too?"
"Mostly they died," Shego told him. "Even the old man has had more than a few close calls."
"Old man….? They're even going after Senor Senior?"
"Did they hesitate to target Jack? Or one of their own bigshots?"
"Yeah. Time to play ninja for real," he grimaced.
"No, Ronald. No more playing. We're all very serious here. Deadly serious," she said, and Ronald could see the raw emotion in those glittering eyes as she spoke.
"I…..hated how we parted. Kim and I. I hoped things worked out for her, but never really found the time to…..see. I'm glad you found her, Shego. And I'll do everything I can to help. KP is still my friend, and if she's alive, then we'll find her. And we'll fix this. You're right," he nodded, and headed for the exit. "No more playing. Time to get serious," he said, and vanished as he simply leapt up the support cable, and moved like a dark lizard up the wire.
Shego said nothing as she watched him go, and turned back to the computer.
"The Monkey is playing with our bananas," she wrote cryptically before sending the message to the only other computer that could receive the encrypted expression.
Even if, in the unlikely event it was intercepted, the message would mean nothing except to those it was intended. She threw a switch on the side of the laptop, and the hidden timer started ticking off five minutes that gave her time to get out, and disappear before the entire local bolt-hole self-destructed, ensuring nothing was left to betray her presence, or her plans.
All she took with her from the room was a small tote, and a photo of her and a redhead in matching wedding dresses.
To Be Continued…