Shout outs to both Cajun Bear 73 and Sentinel 103 for proofing this for me

Chapter 10 Revelations

The shifting of the Sun onto his face started to bring Ron into the land of the living. His head was pounding, but through bleary eyes he was able to look around the room. He was on a huge bed, still in his mission clothes, minus his boots, watch and cell-phone. Looking over the side he spotted his boots placed neatly beside the bed in front of the nightstand. Taking stock, he looked around a bit more and noticed his watch and cell-phone on the nightstand and a note with his name on it under the cell.

Picking up the note he saw a blocky scrawl that he was able to decipher after a moment.

Stoppable-san

Please do not be alarmed. You were rendered unconscious after your battle in the front room of the mansion due to unknown factors. I believe it was exhaustion brought on by your battle with the defenses and have informed the Senor of this. With the aid of Senor Senior, we placed you here to recover.

I have contacted Load-sensei and briefed him on our situation. He said he would contact your family and update them as needed.

The Senor gave me the room next to yours and a pager. Please contact me as soon as you are conscious by either knocking on the adjoining door or calling 1038. I will be checking on your condition periodically.

Sagara Sousuke

'Exhaustion, huh?' Ron had to admit, Sagara thought fast on his feet. After seeing his collapse back at G.J. headquarters, the Soldier had to suspect the real reason Ron had dropped. But Sagara had covered for Ron's vision's very neatly and even found a way to tell Ron what he had done, giving him the chance to go along with the subterfuge.

Seeing the phone and not feeling like moving just yet, he dialed the pager number and laid back against the head of the bed and waited. A few minutes later the door opened to a concerned Sagara.

Seeing Ron's wincing face he asked, "Stoppable-san, are you in need of assistance?"

"I could really use a couple a aspirin. Ugggg. Maybe a whole bottle. Sagara, remind me not do that again anytime soon. Even a hangover didn't hurt this bad." Looking up at the raccoon Soldier, Ron smirked "How's the nose?"

Sousuke was a bit dour, "Still quite sore, Stoppable-san. How's the jaw?"

"Hurts like Hell. Until it's compared to the splitting headache I have. Then it's fine."

"You should be more careful in battle, Stoppable-san." Sousuke looked pointedly around the room and gave Ron a significant look, "The amount of energy you expended yesterday was considerable. Had the battle continued much longer, you might not have had the reserves to continue fighting."

"Dude, you don't have to bother worrying any bugs or cameras. Triple-S would consider it dishonorable to bug the room." Ron glanced around. "Still, we'll talk later, just to be safe. Right now I could use a little help getting into the bathroom." Ron made it to the bathroom under his own steam, with Sousuke providing a steadying arm.

Ron noted a compete shaving kit on the counter, including a new toothbrush and several brands of toothpaste along with towels, soaps and hair care products. Senior might have been a villain, but he was definitely a hospitable host. Ron did his business, then splashed water on his face and neck. Hearing a knock, he opened the door and saw Sousuke standing there with a change of mission clothes from his pack.

"I took the liberty of finding a set of clothes from your gear. The Senor informed me that lunch will be ready in approximately 30 minutes. Will you need further assistance?"

Looking back at the counter, "Naw, I think I'll be OK? We're eating in the main dining room, right?" Seeing Sousuke's surprised look, he added, "I've been there a bunch of times, Dude." Looking and pointing up. "Mostly through HVAC system though."

"Very well, I will see you shortly, Stoppable-san. If you have not arrived in 40 minutes, I will return to check on you."

"Thanks. Ya know, Sagara, we might have got off on a little bit of the wrong foot, but you're all right."

Having no idea how to respond to the comment, Sousuke merely said, "Thank you, Stoppable-san."

**********

Forty-five minutes later, Ron and Sousuke entered the dining room to see Senior already there. One end of the table had three chairs and was covered in various hearty Mediterranean dishes. He stood as the younger men entered and said, "Mr. Stoppable, I trust you're doing better then you were yesterday evening?"

"Yeah, nothing a nights sleep couldn't fix. But right now though, I'm starving."

Senior waved to the chairs flanking his own, "Please gentlemen, sit down, as you can see, luncheon is served." With a wry grin Senior added, "And there's more than enough even for the famous Ronald Stoppable appetite."

Ron paused in taking a seat because he was a bit surprised that Senior knew his first name. "Thanks, Senior. Like I told Sagara, you might be a villain, but you got class."

"Even rivals and foes should acknowledge the niceties, Mr. Stoppable. Now I believe the American term is, 'Dig in.'."

And dig in they did. Sousuke had always been a hearty eater when the opportunity arose. Not to the point of gluttony, but he was a young man who led a very active life style. He expended a significant amount of calories everyday and needed to replace them to stay fit.

But he had nothing on Ron. Ron ate like a man possessed, eating at least a little bit of everything and going back for seconds and even thirds. Sousuke just shook his head in amazement. "Stoppable-san, do you always consume this much food?"

Ron paused in his shoveling and took a moment finish chewing the mouthful. While he chewed, he decided a little misdirection towards Senior might not be a bad idea. No matter how good of a host he was, he was a still a villain after all. Swallowing, "You were right about how much energy I had to use last night. I gotta carb up to get it back."

Nodding, Sousuke returned to his own plate. The conversation at the table was mostly between Ron and Senior, with Sousuke only answering direct questions. Once Ron had eaten his fill, he looked at his host and said, "While this is been a really great spread, Senior, we need to get back home. So let's get down to business. You said you had info about someone trying to hurt my family."

Senior lost all traces of the urbane, amicable multi-billionaire. "Yes, I do. A bit of background. I have many agents throughout Europe and most of the world. Most of these people keep an ear out and an eye open for information that might be of interest to me. Three days ago, I received word that someone was planning to launch an attack at you through your family. The agent only overheard a portion of the relevant conversation. But what they passed to me was frightening enough. And the reason I felt you should be informed is the origins of the threat. It stems from a remnant of the National Socialists."

Sousuke's eye's narrowed, but Ron said, "Who?"

Senior answered with a rueful grin, "The Nazis, Mr. Stoppable."

"……"

"Yes, they're still around, despite the vigorous efforts of the Mossad and other parties that oppose their policies. Very, very few of the original Nazis are still alive. And for the most part, they're well into their eighties. But there is a new crop every generation. Young men and women who delude themselves with the idea of Ubermensch."

"From what the agent gathered, the leader will soon come into a vast fortune. One to either rival or surpass my own. And the plan is to launch a covert takeover of the German government after removing the threat of 'The Buffoon'. That was a quote, by the way. Then installing a new government with very strong pro-Nazi leanings. And the first step will be either killing or crippling your family."

Ron was so stunned, all he could do was blink as Senior continued his terrifying dialog. "I immediately passed the word to every single one of my agents. They were drop all other assignments and focus on verifying the original report, particularly my German agents."

"Shortly before placing a message with young Master Load, enough bits of information had come in to at least warrant giving you a warning. Hence, my calling you here. I was pleased to see you brought your weapon, the Lotus Blade." Senior showing a surprising knowledge of the Lotus Blade, had Ron instantly on alert.

Senior saw the change and smiled. "Relax, Mr. Stoppable. Unlike that ruffian, Montgomery Fiske, I understand the Blade would be of no use to me, because it would not accept me. No matter how interesting I might find it. I am merely curious about it. It seems to have fascinating properties."

Seeing Ron's dumbfounded look, "Do you realize just how much money I have? You can be sure that if I want information on something, I can afford it. And it pays to have as much information on your foes as you can. I've had several teams researching both you and Ms. Possible."

Looking at Sousuke, "And you, my boy, were an enigma until this morning. Sousuke Sagara, Staff Sergeant, transferred to Global Justice from Mithral, an Arm Slave pilot of some note. Sole survivor of several battles between Mithral and various global terrorist organizations. Trained to a fare-thee-well in multiple combat arts. Semi-protégé of Lord Edwin Mallory."

"I remember where I heard your name, young man. Edwin mentioned it in an anecdote about a young Soldier who gave an Admiral what-for. Good show, Borda has always been a pompous, arrogant ass who is in a serious need of having his ego deflated on occasion."

"As I was saying, Mr. Stoppable, your Blade is a fascinating work of art. May I ask how many shape/forms have you mastered with it?"

Sheepishly, Ron replied, "I really haven't mastered any. I just go on instinct with it. When I try to get it to shift forms, it's like… flipping pages in a book. I have to hunt to find the one I want."

Senior went very stern, "Mr. Stoppable, you have been given an awesome responsibility. For everyone's sake, you should train yourself to Master your weapon. And make no mistake, it is a Weapon. As it is now, you are merely its owner, not its Master. With the power inherent within both yourself and the Blade, it would behoove us all, if you acquired full control over both it and yourself. I noticed last night, you started the battle with a Bo. But as you sank deeper into your… Battle Trance, you shifted to a Katana. At the beginning of the battle, you instinctively went for a weapon that is not nearly as likely to kill, didn't you?"

Surprised, Ron quietly answered "Yea! How did you know?"

"I may not be a belted Master of the Martial Arts, my boy. But how do you think I remain in as good a shape as I'm in? I have trained extensively throughout my life to stay in peak condition. In doing so, I have gained a greater then laymen's knowledge of how a Warriors mind works."

Senior's expression became gentle and understanding, "And you are a gentle soul, Mr. Stoppable. Violence is not something that comes naturally to you. It has to be forced out of you. The problem is with someone like you, once you 'turn it on', it can be very difficult to 'turn it off' as it were. That is why it's imperative, that you train yourself and gain full Mastery of your abilities. I trust you will begin to do so in the near future" Senior had glanced quickly at Sousuke when he said that.

Ron scratched his head, "I guess I don't have a choice. I was always afraid of hurting somebody with it. That's why I tried to avoid it. There's this Martial Arts Master I know, maybe I should go see him for a while."

"Excellent, now back to business." Senior pulled a flash drive from the pocket of his jacket and passed it to Ron. "Here is all of the information I have been able to gather so far. Names, locations, anything pertinent. The flash drive also contains the codes to access information on a VERY secure server. As I acquire any new information, I will upload it there."

Ron was grim as he pocketed the flash drive, here he was getting terrifying information from someone he had fought against several times. He had to know. "Why are you telling me all this, Senior? You've tried more than a few evil schemes of your own."

The elderly billionaire was replaced with an old Warrior. "Because my boy, I am a very old man and many, many years ago, as a very young man, younger than you in fact, I fought in the Spanish Civil War." Senior was getting angry at the memory. "I fought for the government against the rebels and their backers, the National Socialists when they used my country as a testing ground for their new type of warfare, Der Blitzkrieg, The Lightning War. Even then Hitler and the Nazis were planning their offensives into the Sudetenland, Austria, Poland and the rest of Europe. I found many of their ideals to be personally repugnant. So much so that after the French fell, I joined with the British in their battle against the Fascists."

"I was assigned to and served with Montgomery and acted as a courier/liaison between him and Patton. Patton needed… special handling. As one of the aristocracy, I had been trained from boyhood on how to comport myself. George Patton was a very urbane and civilized man, who carried himself as one of the nobility and was nevertheless quite vain."

Senior grinned a bit. "He was also one of the most profane men I have ever met. There was this scene in the George C. Scott movie that followed his World War II career. In the scene, there is this group of reporters with a few clergy intermixed. One of the chaplains says 'General, I noticed a Bible on your nightstand. Do you actually read it?' The reply was typical Patton, 'Yes I do, every Goddamned night.' The scene had a very strong basis in reality. We got along well together. I learned great deal from that man, may he rest in peace."

Very grim now, "And I was there when the troops of Patton's Third Army liberated some of the camps." The old Warrior's eyes misted and his voice cracked and became rough. "I saw…… things, horrific things. Things that no one who calls themselves human should see. The absolute lowest of man's inequity to man. I have never been a religious zealot, but I truly believe that the Third Reich was trying to bring about Hell on Earth."

"And no matter what I might have tried to do in the past few years, I will neeveeer allow that…… plague to return." he growled. "I am too old to lead the fight against the foe we face. But you're not."

"Your background makes you uniquely suited for this fight Mr. Stoppable. You're young, have been performing 'Hero' work for the last few years. As you demonstrated last night, quite capable of taking care of yourself in a Combat situation….and you're Jewish."

"There is also one last thing I hesitate to mention. You have also proved yourself capable of 'going the distance' as it were. You can kill. I know what happened that day has caused you no end of grief. But the point remains, that to win this fight, you will most likely be forced to do so again. The foes you will face are ruthless, unscrupulous and willing to do whatever it takes to win."

"A word of advice. I would suggest you enlist both Drew and Edward Lipsky."

"Drakken and Motor Ed?! Why?"

"Although they have been your foes for the last few years, you and they share a heritage. Going back to Abraham."

Ron's eyes narrowed a bit, "They're Jewish?"

Senior smirked, "With a name like Lipski, what do you think? Their grandfather was a Polish Jew, who had been trapped in the Warsaw Ghetto in '39. The fact he survived there to the end of the war is little short of a miracle and a testament to both his toughness and ability to survive. I think once the Lipski's aware of the situation, you would be hard pressed to find stauncher allies. And while neither of them are exactly cricket, there is no denying Drew's intelligence, nor Edward's mechanical skills. Both could be of great assistance. "

"Mr. Stoppable, one last thing." Senior sounded very stern. "If you need assistance of any kind in dealing with this threat, do not hesitate to ask. Funds, equipment, information, logistics of any kind, even if you need me to come personally and stand guard. ANYTHING. All you need do is ask." Senior passed over a bank card with Ron's name on it. "Use this. It has a limit of one hundred million American dollars."

Hearing the figure, Ron fumbled and flipped the card into the air. Sousuke's hand blurred and snatched the card out of the air and passed it back to the stunned Ron. Then Senior stunned Ron some more.

"If you need more contact me. I have informed all my agents to pass any messages from you to me immediately. Merely identify yourself as Ronald Stoppable."

"Senior, I, I, I don't now what to say."

Senior placed his hand on the younger Warrior's shoulder. "Don't say anything Ronald. Stop them. Whatever it takes, stop them."

They turned to go to the landing pad when something popped into Senior's mind. Sousuke's courtesy throughout the entire visit. "Mr. Sagara, may I have a moment of your time?"

Sousuke nodded to Ron then turned and faced the billionaire. Ron left them and headed to the waiting hoverjet. Once Ron was out of earshot, he asked, "Sir?"

"By your definition, I am considered a terrorist. Yet you still address me with courtesy, why?"

"Two reasons, Sir. Number one, Stoppable-san assures me that you are both honorable and chivalrous. Therefore I will give you the benefit of the doubt in the hope that maybe I am wrong and you have just been misguided."

"I see. And the second."

"Because courtesy is the hallmark of civilization. And while I have been a Soldier all my life and been in many uncivilized places, I choose to be civilized. Even the tribesman of my adopted homeland, as primitive as they seem, still acted with courtesy.

Senior breathed out through his nose and said, "I must say, young man, you have given me great deal to think about."

"If I may, Sir, may I make a suggestion?"

"Please."

"I have heard there is a saying in English. 'There are two sides to every coin.' If you're bored and looking for a hobby, why not go in the other direction. You've made a good start with Stoppable-san. Use this opportunity to go the other way, I think you will find it a great deal more satisfying. I know I do. Good day, Sir" Sousuke turned and followed Ron to the hover jet.

Senior pondered, 'Become a Hero? Now there is a strange concept.'

**********

Once they were in the air and on course, Ron started to rant a bit. "I can't believe Senior wants me to get Drakken and Motor Ed to help. That's almost crazy. He has to know those two are whack! I just can't see bringing them into this. Doesn't he know how many times me and Kim had to bust up their plans."

"Stoppable-san, I have studied 'The War in the Pacific' or if you prefer, the 'Second World War'. And although both General Patton and Lord Montgomery were at loggerheads, both were honorable men fighting together against a common enemy. I suggest you try to find common ground between you and this Drekken and… Motor Ed?"

"It's Drakken, Dr. Drakken. I don't know where he got the Doctor part. Maybe he sent in a lot of box tops, who knows." Ron started rubbing his sore jaw. "Course, now that I think about it, if we get Drakken, we get Shego. Now that could be a real plus."

"How so?"

"Dude, Shego's a real firecracker, a former villain who's almost as tough as Kim and she can shoot plasma from her hands." Ron paused for a second. "She's also hot."

"How do you know the state of the air conditioning at her home?"

Ron started laughing, "Hahahaha, That's a good one, Sagara!"

Sousuke said, "A good one what, Stoppable-san?"

Ron realized that Sousuke was serious and stared, closed his eyes, shook his head and stared some more. Then he blinked. "Dude, you're joking, right?"

"Why should I jest, Stoppable-san?"

"Oh, come on, even I'm not that clueless!"

"What do you mean, Stoppable-san? Kaname-san has called me clueless almost from our first meeting."

Ron started looking around at the bulkheads and muttering to himself, "I don't believe this. There's actually someone in the world more clueless than I am?" Looking back at the confused Sousuke, "Uh, look, it's one of those metahoracal things." muttering again "I can't believe I'm having this conversation!" Ron continued his explanation. "Hot means attractive, understand?"

"Ah, a metaphor, I understand your meaning now. I'm still learning idiom and figurative language."

Ron just looked dumbfounded, "Dude, you got a lot to learn." It was going to be a long flight.

**********

Shego couldn't believe what she had just heard. She mentally replayed it to see if she was wrong. 'OK, I said, "Makes sense. But that's not the only reason you're here is it?" Then she said, "No, it's not. I don't know any way to say this other than to just say it. Shego, could you kill someone?" So I did hear her right.'

Shego looked stunned for a moment until her normal sarcastic nature took over, "Is this a hypothetical question or are you seriously asking me to whack somebody? What, your goody two shoes nature won't let you do it? Cause I can tell ya right now, I don't work cheap."

A muttered "No, she doesn't." came from Drakken's corner when a GLARE sent him back to his blackboards.

With a long suffering sigh, "Hypothetically, Shego."

The villainess looked at the Heroine, hard. There was no humor, no evasiveness, no deceit, Kim was asking her a very serious question and was desperate for answers. Never taking her eyes off the younger girl, "I could use a workout, and so could you! Dr. D, we're going to the gym. You stay out, capice!."

"Certainly Shego. In the meantime, I'll start lunch. Tomato soup and BLT's, with the extra thick bacon?"

There was no trace of smirk, sass, mischief or disrespect in her answer. Just a soft, gentle smile. "That'll be great, Doc. Come on, Princess. Time to get your butt kicked." Shego strode off before Kim could retort.

Kim followed the mint hued woman through the lair to the gym. Shego walked to a locker and pulled out a couple sets of martial arts openhanded gloves. "This is just a spar, no reason to get all bruised up, eh?"

"Sure thing."

Once they had the gloves in place, Shego moved to a corner of the mat and Kim took a position opposite her. Shego dropped into a ready stance and said, "So, could I kill someone, huh?" Then she threw a three/quarter speed punch.

Kim parried it away and said, "It's something Sagara's girlfriend asked me. And I didn't have an answer."

They traded light punches and kicks, parries and blocks while they talked. Interspersing their talk with offensive and defensive strikes. "I talked to my Dad last night and he threw me for a loop." Left/right combo, shuffle right, block. "When I told him what Kaname said, he told me, that in Ron's place, he would have killed them too."

"YOUR Dad? Whoa." parry, slide back/left, right jab, left backfist. "He didn't even get that mad after Dr. D. snatched the Hephaestus technology from his brain."

"Yeah, I know, and Ron…" front snap kick, stamp aimed at leading foot, right jab "I have soooooo screwed us up."

Shego winced "That goody two shoes crack was a little too close to home, huh?" They continued to trade light attacks, just enough to make the other react.

"Yeah, Shego, it was."

"I would say 'Sorry', but I doubt if anybody would believe it."

"Whatever. Anyway, I don't know what to think. Your record's clean as far as killing someone is concerned. But even as far as you and Drakken have gone, I don't think either of you would kill."

Shego stepped back and held up a hand to stop. Both fighters had worked up a light sheen of sweat and were breathing harder than normal. Shego walked to a mini fridge and pulled out a couple bottles of water and held them up, one in either hand. Kim indicated the left, so Shego tossed it to Kim. Grabbing some rolled up hand towels, she tossed one of those as well.

The few moments of silence were giving Shego time to think about what Kim had said. After wiping the sweat from her face, Shego looked at her erstwhile opponent and said, "Last year, I'd have agreed with you. Six months ago, hell even three months ago. Now, if someone tried to really hurt Drew… I don't know, but I might, I probably would. I hope I never have to find out."

Kim chugged half of the water in the bottle trusting Shego would not poison her own water supply. "Sagara and Kaname seem to just take it in stride. I don't know how they do it. To tell you the truth, I don't know which of the two makes me more nervous. The girl, Kaname, seems to be just another foreign exchange student, getting ready for college. And, I mean, no offense, but you and Drakken just come off as 'evil'…"

Shego interrupted her, "Thanks Princess, I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

"Anyway, until I read the reports on them, I'd have walked past her without a second glance. She has never killed anyone, but I watched this video of her and Sagara when they arrived at G.J. Headquarters. She was so close to shooting Agent Du you could see her finger tensing on the trigger."

Kim finished the water and went on, "And Sagara seems to be a quiet, wallflower type. Until you really watch him. He's a coiled spring, ready to fight, all the time. When they landed in the briefing room at G.J., one instant he's rolling into the room, the next, he has a pistol pulled and scanning for targets. And I literally mean from one instant to the next. According to the files, he has over 75 confirmed kills and nearly 150 more probables."

Shego whistled, then something occurred to her, "What a minute, you said they're going to college. How old is he?"

"About nineteen." Kim went on to explain about his past.

Shego looked a little apprehensive, "He's only nineteen, and he's been through all that? Are you sure he's not around the bend?"

"The files have extensive psyche reports on him, and while he suffers from PTSD related nightmares, they give him clean bill."

Shego stood up and walked back to the mats, "Damn, he's had it rough." Shego waved Kim onward. "Come on, I haven't had a good fight since the invasion. I've been working out, but it's not the same. I'm not getting caught flat-footed again. Next time I have to go up against an eight foot tall alien, I'm gonna kick their ass."

Kim mirrored her sparring partners stance "About that, there shouldn't be another invasion." Kim proceeded to tell Shego about her father's revelation.

"Man, we dodged a bullet on that one." Shego had decided that what she really wanted was a workout, and the Princess was the perfect target. With an EVIL grin, "Ya know, I think maybe I oughta seduce Stoppable to thank him for saving our asses."

She got her workout alright. And what the hell, bruises will heal.

**********

Deep in the heart of an underground bunker, the new leader of the Party was poring over a listing of the contents to one of the chambers. So far he hadn't found the things he was looking for. Oh that's not to say he had come up empty handed. Who knew one of Josef's assistants had discovered a serum for an adrenalin substitute. He had already planned a way to use it like the old fashioned morphine syrettes for Combat use.

Nearly all of the technological equipment was useless, having been either vastly improved on in the intervening sixty-five years, or rendered totally obsolete. But the chemical/biological apparatus on the other hand was a different story.

Serums for faster healing or making a Soldier stronger without resorting to the use of one of Henchco's© rings. As that red-headed Bitch had proved before, rings could be taken away. But let's see her take something that was in the bloodstream.

And the Mystical/Arcane search was going well too. The Ark was lost, buried in some American secure warehouse and Excalibur had disappeared into a black hole in England somewhere. But other items could be of use. He was still looking for a way to revive that genetically altered idiot, but it was here, somewhere. He merely had to be patient. And despite past performance, patience was a strong point for a man who had waited over sixty years to bring back the Reich.

Soon, very soon, the first blows will be struck.

A messenger brought him a report from one of his moles. He read over the information, trying to figure how it would affect his plans. "Hmmmm, it seems Ze Buffoon and ze Bitch are getting some help. Ve might have to do zomezing about zhem." Looking back at the messenger, "Contact ze Agent, tell him to gather all ze informazion about zhese two. Ve are too close to allow a pair of idiotion Japs to interfere. Make sure that Du knows how important ziz iz."

"Jawhol."

(Think about Du's attitude. Almost perfect for the Waffen SS or the Hitler Youth)