Chapter 22 Meaning Of Life
By Disturbed
A.N. As you can see it's update time. Cajunbear and Sentinel have come through again on the Beta/Proofreading duties. Thanks Dudes.
This next line came from the e-mail CB sent the proofed copy back in. He was talking about the listening to the song as he read it. "I did and it made Ron's battle much more brutal when reading it." Start listening where indicated.
The song can be found here: http://www dot youtube dot com/watch?v=S_KsM8pEh2A
The door opened and two young men looked at each other, both giving the OK signal. Ron didn't like the insertion plan he and Sagara had worked out, but he couldn't find any better alternative. The hoverjet was using the same transponder codes as the diverted cargo carrier. But the flight plan would only take them to within 5 miles of the DZ. Because it was daylight they couldn't open their chutes too soon or there was a good chance the WWEE goons might see them coming.
That meant they had to first freefall, aiming for the DZ, using the gliding suits like human-sized flying squirrels. When they got closer to both the ground and the DZ they could open the parafoil chutes to travel the rest of the way out of sight behind the bluff that hid the Drop zone from the lair's radar coverage.
Ron freely admitted that Sagara had a lot more experience with HALO jumps than he did and let the Soldier lead the way. When Sousuke gave the signal and popped his chute, Ron was only an instant behind. Both had looked over the clearing Wade had found for them using the commandeered Russian satellite overhead. But the best imagery is no match for Mark One eyeball when it comes to preparing for a landing of this nature.
Sousuke carefully watched things like the ripples of the pond on one side of the clearing, or the way the grass moved to make sure he had the wind properly factored into the landing. He came in from downwind and flared for a silent landing. Ron flared a little too soon and wound up hung in a tree, hanging about three feet from the ground. He was quietly grumbling when he saw Sagara looking at him in puzzlement. He quietly growled "What?"
In the same quiet tone Sousuke asked, "Stoppable-san, you have successfully performed a HALO jump from 40,000 feet and traveled over 5 miles to land on a DZ that is less than a quarter of an acre. And you are able to walk away with both yourself and your equipment intact. The mission is still viable. You have nothing be worried or ashamed of. I have had several jump finish the same way. Merely take this as a learning experience and remember not to flare for your landing so soon next time."
And it was that easy. That simple to change the "Quit playing around, Ron!" he expected to hear into a positive constructive criticism. Sousuke had made the point that Ron had made an error, but he had done it in such a way as to let him know that he had also successfully competed this phase of the mission. And for one of the few times in his life Ron Stoppable was speechless.
"Now hurry and get down so we can continue."
Ron wasted no time in shucking himself out of the harness and landing lightly on the ground. When they had hefted their packs, Sagara pulled out a map and a compass, took a sighting and headed off.
Ron had to ask, "Uhh, dude, wouldn't it have been easier to just use the GPS or call Wade?"
"Electronic devices can malfunction, communications can be either traced or tapped. But it's almost impossible for a compass to fail or an enemy to change the Earth's magnetic fields. And since we're not broadcasting needlessly, there's nothing for an enemy to lock onto. We'll have to contact Load-sensei just before infiltration though."
Ron couldn't believe there was someone better than Kim at sneaking up on the bad guys. He even knew of a villain that had done just as he had mentioned, scanning for the Kimmunicator frequencies: Zorpox! And if one could do it there might be others.
**********
Gemini, aka Sheldon Director, looked into the cell that contained the two girls. "Sorry for the tight quarters ladies. But I only expected to capture Kim Possible. Not Kim Possible and a guest. I'll have a secure area for you, Miss…..?"
Kaname glared at the one eyes man "Think I'd rather stay here!"
Kim interrupted Gemini's rejoinder, "Sheldon, you're so busted! Our boyfriends had plans on taking us out tonight. Now they're gonna have to come here and foil whatever whack scheme you've got going on! I think it's safe to say that you'll be looking at a new living space by morning." She looked at Kaname and asked "What do you think, an 8 X 10 foot cell?"
Kaname's eyes were utterly flat and her voice was absolutely deadpan, "That's if Sousuke doesn't kill him!"
"What's wrong with the two of you."
Kim just smiled, "I guess you didn't get the memo on Ron or his new running buddy. You're best bet is to just open the door and trade places with us."
"You're awfully arrogant for a couple of girls locked inside a cell!"
"Look, we don't have all day. So go ahead with your rant, tell us what your scheme is this time and go away."
"No scheme, Kim Possible. I just wanted you out of the way while I launch my assault against my sister's little hideaway."
"That's it? Fine, goodbye!"
"Just so you know, there are at least three guards outside the door at all times. So even if you do somehow manage to get out of the cell, you won't leave this room. Not for a very long time!"
"Whatever!"
Gemini seemed discomforted by the laissez-faire attitude of the two in front of him. He whirled and stomped out of the room the door clanging shut behind him. Kaname took a deep breath and sighed.
Kim looked at the other girl and said, "Don't worry about the boys, this guy is strictly low-ball."
"I'm not worried about them. I'm worried about our captors. Sousuke is not going to be in a good mood."
"Well neither is Ron, but that's not that surprising."
Kaname had a habit of falling back into Japanese tense when she was under stress, "Kim-san, I'm concerned with how many of the enemy they might have to kill to get us out of here."
Kim's eyes widened as she snapped them to the other girl. The thought of Ron having to take a life again suddenly made her sick in her stomach and the flippant way that she handled Gemini suddenly tasted like ashes.
**********
After a forced march of about an hour, they arrived in the area of the thermal bloom Wade mentioned. Donning the glasses Wade had jiggered up for them they saw the rising thermal coming from a camouflaged vent. When they spotted it, Sousuke pulled out his ear bud and showed it to Ron. Ron got the point and stuck his in his ear and fastened the throat mic in place. They worked out a fast code of radio clicks.
Sousuke had Ron wait for his signal, then he vanished. It was almost like watching the ninjas at Yamanouchi. A few minutes later he saw the Soldier reappear near the vent. Sousuke carefully pulled out the Kimmunicator and contacted both Ron and Wade. Wade got the message that they were in silent mode.
Sousuke had him scan the entrance for sensors or traps. Not finding any made Sousuke more suspicious than normal. He got down on the ground and carefully looked ahead. Barely glittering in the half light was a monofilament line. He traced it to a junction box that was wired to a series of cameras. The line was there to activate the cameras and since the cameras weren't drawing any power, that made them very hard to defeat.
Unless you were a suspicious bastard like Staff Sergeant Sousuke Sagara. Once you knew what to look for it was an easy matter to step over the line and enter the vent. Sousuke signaled Ron forward and wordlessly pointed out the tripwire.
Ron risked a few seconds of verbal communication with Wade, "Wade, can you tap into the security system from here?"
Wade had Ron pull a jumper and transmitter from his kit and install it on the cable coming from the junction box. He had Ron extend the antenna from the transmitter outside the vent and partway up a tree. It allowed Wade to both tap the security systems and use the wiring inside the lair as an antenna, maintaining communications with his field agents.
Once he was in the system, he had some bad news and some good news. Over the ear buds they heard, "Alright, bad news first, Gemini has really stepped up his security. I can't shut the security systems down without alerting the goons monitoring it. I can't even force the system to not 'see' you. But what I can do is give it so many false positives that they either have to shut it down or listen to alarms every 30 seconds. I can start the alarms whenever you're ready."
"Load-sensei, since you are tracking us, you'll know when we set it off, correct?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Wait until we have no choice, then set off the alarms in several widely spread out locations…."
"And force them to react to all of them at the same time. That's brilliant!"
"We are going to take a moment to catch our breath, we'll contact you in a few moments." Sousuke pulled the ear bud and throat mic off and turned the Kimmunicator off. Then he looked at Ron. Neither of them were even breathing hard, so Ron got the idea that Sagara wanted to talk without Wade being able to listen in.
Once Ron had done the same, Sousuke took a breath and said, "Stoppable-san, we have several options for the mission. One or the other of us act as a distraction while the other infiltrates to free the girls. We both try to infiltrate using stealth, free them and fight our way out. Or we can both try a straightforward assault to smash through the enemy before they can react. Since you know their habits better, what would you suggest?
"Well, when me and Kim busted them up, we would try and get as close as we could. Then I usually ran around screaming, getting them to follow me and Kim would try and give the goons a beat down. Whoever got closer would try and blow up whatever ray-gun or doomsday device Gemini had in there. We haven't had to rescue any hostages before."
"How dangerous is the enemy we are about to face."
"No more so then the rest of Kim's rogue's gallery, why?"
"Then unless things have drastically changed, there should be no need for lethal force, correct?"
"No, not really."
"Stoppable-san, you are angry and upset at Possible-sans kidnapping. If you're not very careful, you could allow that fact to color your actions inside. I have to ask you. Can you honestly control yourself enough to only use necessary force?"
Ron knew Sagara was asking him a very serious question. And the honest answer was, he wasn't sure.
The Kimmunicator started vibrating and wouldn't stop. It was Wade's emergency signal. Slipping the buds and mics back into place, Ron answered "Go Wade."
"Guys, I was snooping around the system and I found out some really bad news."
"Aww, man! What now?"
"It seems Gemini is getting ready to launch a major strike against the G.J. base here in town. It's set to go in about 3 hours, right at dusk. Something like 20 plus hover jets loaded with WWEE Troops."
"DAMN, call Dr. B and let her know. We'll see what we can do to throw a wrench in his plans from here."
"I already let her know. She's scrambling Agents as we speak. They should be onsite in about an hour."
"Hopefully we'll have him shut down by then. We'll call you in a bit to let ya know."
"Alright, I'll contact you if anything else comes up. Wade out."
"Looks like we'll have to go old school on this one. I'll play the distraction and you rescue the girls."
Sousuke looked at him intently and said, "My question from earlier still stands. Can you control your self enough to only use necessary force?"
"I guess we'll have to find out the hard way. But between Kim and Kaname being prisoners and Gemini's attack on G.J., I'm not going to hold back too much. If they try lethal force, then that's what they're gonna get. If they don't…we'll see. But I make you no promises about Gemini himself. That's one dude I'm gonna lay some serious smack monkey on."
Sousuke could see that was the best he was going to get, so he asked the next question, "Do you think you can create enough of a distraction to gain the attention of the entire base?!"
Ron just looked at the Soldier with a feral grin, "Let me worry about that. You just get to the holding cells and get ready to get the girls out. Get me about three or four minutes after you get my signal to move."
"You will contact me over the coms?"
"Not exactly, don't worry, you'll know it when you hear it. Just give me a double click when you're in position" Ron ghosted to the vent about thirty meter down the shaft and climbed in. The last thing Sousuke saw was Ron's feet disappearing through the vent. He headed to the vent that Wade indicated led to the lower parts of the lair and moved towards the holding cell.
Twenty minutes later Ron was in position to disrupt the impending WWEE assault and Sousuke had moved into a spot to affect the escape of the girls. When he had a clear view of the cell door, Sousuke double clicked his com giving Ron the go ahead.
Meaning Of Life by Disturbed
http://www dot youtube dot com/watch?v=S_KsM8pEh2A
Ron landed in the middle of the hangar with a resounding boom that shouldn't have been possible for his light frame. His landing caused a small crater and raised a dust cloud that at first hid his appearance from the assembled WWEE goons and aircraft techs.
He stayed crouched for a minute until they started to come closer to investigate. When the cloud parted enough for them to finally see the Warrior that had landed in their midst, Ron screamed and started twirling the Bo shaped Lotus Blade overhead and crashed into the first of the goons. The Mystical Monkey Power in full effect, hair floating and eyes blazing, the Warrior slammed into the gathered forces like a tidal wave.
Get psycho, I wanna get psycho
Get psycho, I wanna wanna wanna wanna, I wanna get psycho
Run you little bitch
I want your power glowing, juicy flowing, red hot, meaning of life
It's not enough to have a little taste
I want the whole damn thing now
Can you dig it?
As he mowed them down he moved towards the prepared hoverjets. When he got within range of the craft the Lotus Blade shifted to a naginata and Ron proceeded to slash and hack at the aircraft rendering them useless. When one of the goons got too close, the Blade either flashed back to a Bo or Ron used the blunted end to send the enemy sailing away from him.
The lucky ones were knocked unconscious. The rest suffered from an assortment of broken bones, busted noses and cracked ribs. They were tossed around like leaves in a tornado, being slammed into the aircraft or the lockers lining the wall, if they were lucky. The bare rock if they weren't.
Need to get psycho
wanna hear you say it
say, you want it, need it
Don't wanna wait until we finish the show
It's not enough, you hunger for more
You're one twisted little fuck
And now you wanna get psycho with me
It was the hydrogen fuel tanks that got the attention of the rest of the base. Ron had spotted the refueling hoses on the other side of the hanger. He heaved the Lotus Blade across the hanger and it transformed into a full sized medieval Battle Ax. It hit the pressure regulator and caused the tanks to overpressure themselves. When that happened it was only the "Henchman's Union" that saved the lives of the minions of Gemini. H.U. required that there be blowout panels wherever there was the chance of just such an emergency
BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!!!
Give in, give in, decide, give in,
Give in, give in, decide, give in,
Give in, give in, DECIDE, give in,
Give in, give in, DECIDE, give in,
Deep within the base the explosion rattled the bars and caused dust to fall inside the cell. Kaname looked around and said, "Either Sousuke has arrived in Al or Ron's really upset." A few minutes later, from outside the door was the sound of grunts and bodies hitting the door, walls and floor. A moment later the door opened and Sousuke entered carrying the key to the cell. "I guess it's Ron!"
Sousuke unlocked the cell door and wordlessly presented Kaname with her BDA. He also passed Kim her equipment belt and set his pack on the floor. "There is mission clothes inside." His manner was very brusque and abrupt, wasting no time on a reunion with Kaname.
Get psycho, I wanna get psycho
Get psycho, I wanna wanna wanna wanna, I wanna get psycho
Scratch my itch
Give me your power glowing, juicy flowing red hot, meaning of life
It's not enough to have a little piece
I want the whole damn thing now
Can you dig it?
Sousuke ducked back outside the door to afford them the privacy to change and to watch for incoming enemies. Inside the pack they found mission clothes in their sizes, including their boots and Kimmunicators, There was also something in the pack that would merit Sousuke an extra close cuddling session once they got home. They quickly changed, putting their good clothes inside the pack, which Kim shouldered. Then they opened the door to see Sagara standing there like he was one of the guards.
He nodded and said "This way!" and took off down the hallway trying to signal Ron over the coms "Stoppable, Sagara, recovery complete. Extracting now!….Stoppable, Sagara, come in… Damn, he's not answering."
BOOOMMMM!!
None of them flinched at the noise, but Kim observed, "It seems he's still mobile though!"
Need to get psycho
Wanna hear you scream
Tell me to take you, scare you, fuck you
After we finish the show
It's not enough, you listening whore?
You're one twisted little fuck
And now you wanna get psycho with me
They traveled through the corridors following the schematics Wade had pulled from the security system. As they went, Sousuke continued to try and contact Ron without results. Along the way they ran into a few guards that he let Kim or Kaname handle as he guarded the rear. Kim would use various Kung Fu techniques. Kaname on the other hand was just brutal. Sousuke had packed her Halisen. That nearly forgotten sturdy paper fan that she had used to good effect when 'teaching' Sousuke. You wouldn't have thought it to look at it, but Halisen was able to send the guards flying.
Give in, give in, decide, give in,
Give in, give in, decide, give in,
Give in, give in, DECIDE, give in,
Give in, give in, DECIDE, give in,
Back up at the main levels, Ron slammed into the doors separating the hangar from Central Control. He saw Gemini standing up on his pedestal like some kind of overlord.
"GEMIIIINNNIIIIIII!!!"
He was trying, he really was trying not to lose control. It was a near thing though, because all the Mystical Monkey Warrior within him knew was the enemy had taken his Mate and Troop Sister and it screamed out for retribution. The Warrior hammered through the incoming minions to get to the one truly responsible for his being there. The large, one eyed, metal handed human on the pedestal that had the audacity to think he was better than the rest of the world.
I can feel the blood, flowing through my veins
Spilling on my soul
And now the hunger's getting bigger
Come a little closer now pretentious whore and pull my trigger
Free the violence that is building in me
I say now end of the ride, murder suicide
Is how I've been feelin' lately
Sagara, Kim and Kaname had worked their way through the guards to enter the room from the other side and completely blindsided the goons in their way. The Warrior noted the arrival of some of the other members of his "Troop", including his Mate, and hooted a greeting. He turned back to the task of dealing with the enemy in front of him.
Come a little closer my pretentious whore I'm living with a feeling that I can't ignore
Come a little closer my pretentious whore I'm living with a feeling that I can't ignore
Come a little closer my pretentious whore I'm living with a feeling that I can't ignore
And the need to get psycho is not a question to me
By now Gemini had figured out he had made a critical error in who to target on Team Possible. Between the group on one side dropping anyone that came within range and the 'Unstoppable' sidekick on the other literally launching men two, three and even four times his size into the terminals and other equipment, the minions morale had fractured beyond all recovery. They were now trying to run and escape from the hurricane that had been loosed in their midst. All they wanted to do was make it to the escape pods. Gemini tried threatening them to stand and fight but they weren't having it.
Get, get, get, get, get psycho
Get, get, get I wanna get psycho
Get, get, get, get, get psycho
Get, get, get I wanna, wanna, wanna, wanna
Get psycho (Psycho)
Get, get, get I wanna get psycho (Psycho)
Get, get, get, get, get psycho (Psycho)
Get, get, get I wanna get psycho
I wanna, wanna, wanna
Gemini tried to launch a spread of finger missiles only to have The Warrior turn the Lotus Blade into a shield. When he saw that wasn't working he launched another spread at the otherwise occupied group of Sagara, Kim and Kaname. The Warrior howled a warning and jumped to protect them. He wasn't really worried about the Mate or the Brother, but the Sister hadn't demonstrated the ability to avoid the incoming fire.
He got there just in time. The missiles hit his shield and knocked him down, but Sister was safe. He looked back at the pedestal to see Gemini enter an escape pod and the door close behind him. The Warrior screamed his rage at losing his prey. He leaped to the door of the pod and cut through it only to discover it had already launched.
"GEEEMIIINNIIIIIIIIII!!!!"
**********